Heavy breathing and fast foot steps. A mortal man sped down the corridor of the most advanced research facility in Japan. Sweat rolled down his forehead in sheets as he fought to look back into the darkness behind him. He had to get to that room. He was the only one left to send the distress call. His glasses fell from his face as his mind raced with torment. His chest hurt and feet were cramping, he was too old for this. But when the demented sounds of rolling laughter began to fill his ears from all around, it made him go faster. Finally he was there. The automatic doors lifted high. He spun on his heels, nearly falling as he slammed his hand against the terminal, closing the door and locking it.

The lights overhead flickered as he breathed a sigh of relief. He made it. The mortal turned, placing a hand over his heart which was beating faster than it had in the past thirty years. But there was no time to waste. He darted to the computer, bringing it up and arranging a distress beacon. It was to be broadcast straight up into outer space, hopefully getting anybody’s attention to the horrors now unfolding.

THOOM!

The man’s worried face shot over his shoulder. The sliding door was bent inward. Another tremendous bang nearly made him fall. He looked back at the screen, typing in commands as fast as his old fingers would allow.

“Send. Send. SEND!” He muttered as he finished, glancing over his face.

Time crept by so slowly until the beacon was cast. Just at that moment, the doors crumbled. The steel slid against the floor, causing the man to turn. He was cornered. His eyes widened in horror as the demented laughter came from the darkness. “You’re too late!” He shouted, “It’s been sent!”

… A pair of yellow, bulbous eyes flashed in the darkness, vaguely illuminating a humanoid shape…

---

A distant galaxy far away, a massive celebration was underway. An end of a violent era has come. A war waged for the better half of a century was finally ceased. Mankind and the Xiliens, so similar but so different, had finally come to terms. It was a monumental event mostly arranged by the Earth’s own Seatopian Empire. To assure this peace, the greatest of all civilizations played host to the treaty signing: the Land of Light. Among its spiraling towers of ornate crystals, the men and women of the Planet of Ultra watched peace triumph over hate.

On a grand stage, on either side of Seatopia’s Emperor, the General of the Earth Defense Forces Douglas Gordon and the Xilien High Commander known simply as “X.” It would be an uneasy truce. A truce easily shattered, but if the Earth were to survive, it was a truce that at least had to be attempted. In this truce, once the Xilien’s home world completely died, the Earth would act as a secondary home so long as the computer-based aliens shared their technology.

Gordon and X shook hands to thunderous applause. Behind each one, their crews stood tall and silent. These men and women never fought one another, but their parents and grand parents had. It was a fierce feud that lasted for generations suddenly put to rest. Behind the massive stage, the machine Moguera and cyborg Gigan stood side-by-side with Megalon behind them...

But a different meeting was happening away from this pageant for peace.

“You’re worried over nothing, Seven.” Zoffy spoke sternly, “Ultraman is a powerful warrior. You underrate him.”

The crimson giant nodded, “He is powerful. Second only to the masters, but it has been over a month since he’s checked in. There has been no communication with Earth since that time. We need to do a reconnaissance.”

“It is a great distance between Earth and here.” Zoffy, Commander of the Space Garrison and its most battle-hardened member, stated. “When the humans go home, you can go with them if you want. But do not stress this truce. The universe can’t afford to lose another habitatable planet.”

Ultraseven nodded, “Thank you, Zoffy.”

The seasoned veteran of the Space Garrison patted the warrior on the soldier. “Trusting your instincts is something you’ve always been good at, Seven. Only this time, I do hope you are more than wrong.”

Onboard the Gotengo, a young man remained behind. He didn’t see this truce lasting. His parents were killed by the Xiliens while he was still but a child. He refused to be on stage with them, let alone shake their hands. Ozaki rested his head back. “Hurry up and get this over with.” He spat, wishing he had never let Gordon talk him into this publicity stunt.

A beep came from the terminal. His tired, brown eyes opened. He brushed his black hair away from his eyes and tilted his head. “Hmm?” He reached out, pressing a small circular button.

“Emergency Rescue Beacon Detected.” A computerized voice came from the Gotengo’s controls.

Ozaki quickly sat upward, “Where?”

“Earth.”

Gordon placed his left hand on the treaty while lifting his right. This was followed by X. Both grizzled veterans in this war looked at one another in the eye. It was the human who acted first, extending his hand for X to shake. The Xilien looked down, nodded, and smiled. “Peace at last.”

Mere inches away from the historic handshake, Ozaki called out from the side of the stage. “SOS from Earth!” Gordon pulled his hand away and looked at Ozaki, “What?”

Gordon looked back at X with an angry glare. The young leader lifted both of his gloved hands, “It’s not us!”

Just before Gordon could respond, a booming voice came from above the grand stage. “Enough!” It was loud enough to make the floor shake and send shivers down both Gordon and X’s spines. “I will not allow a misunderstanding to ruin this truce. I cannot command your forces, but I highly recommend both of you take your crews back to Earth to answer this beacon.”

X looked up, but couldn’t see the source of the voice. “And who are you?”

"An Ultra that is very interested in seeing this truce upheld."

X looked back over at Gordon. He nodded, “We’ll go, but only if Gigan can as well.”

Gordon breathed deeply, “Moguera as well.”

Emperor Antonio patted both of them on their backs. “We’ll remain here, waiting for your return.” He declared, referring to the handful of Seatopians that also came for the truce, “But Megalon shall return and lend his drills."

Ultraseven looked over at Zoffy. He lifted a finger and then pointed at his own chest.

“I will assign Ultraseven as well, to make sure this truce doesn’t falter.” Zoffy glanced back at the crimson giant, “When you’re right… you’re right.”

---

The Gotengo was on her way back to Earth, a trip that would take a good three days even when using the Ultras’ mysterious pathways. Gigan, Moguera, and Megalon flew behind the battleship. Onboard, the Xiliens and humans tried to stay out of each others ways. X convinced Gordon he and his kind had no involvement in this attack, but Ozaki was still weary…

“About damn time we see some action on this journey!” Moguera co-pilot Kiyoshi Sato chirped. “I was starting to feel cooped up!”

“Hush.” The far more calm and collected Koji Shinjo ordered, “This isn’t a combat mission, it’s a rescue. We don’t know what’s going on. We haven’t had contact with Earth in over two months.”

The third pilot, Akira Yuki, joined the conversation, “Do you think the Xiliens are involved?”

“I don’t know.” Koji sighed, “I tried warning the E.D.F. that putting the two most powerful weapons in our arsenal out of direct action for a prolonged period of time was asking for trouble. But they didn’t want to listen, as usual.”

“More bureaucratic bull-“ Kiyoshi was cut off before he could finish.

Captain Gordon’s voice came through, barking orders. “We’ll be at Earth in a few, I want you all ready but remember, until we see what is going on, Gigan is not your target.”

On the bridge of the Gotengo, Dan Moroboshi stood. He was stationed on Earth over fifty years ago as a member of the now defunct Ultra Garrison. A visitor then as much as he is now. “So much has changed.” As he looked through a view port, spotting a base on the moon.

“It’s just for show.” Gordon declared, “There’s nobody there. Government just wanted to see if it could be done. Turns out there’s not much beneficial use to a manned moon base.”

As they got closer to the Earth, Dan’s head tilted. “It’s… greener than I remember.”

Gordon and Ozaki stood from their seats. “What the…” Ozaki commented. Even through the clouds, they could see something was off. Vast patches of gray and green spread across the globe where there was once ocean and deserts.

Gordon shook his head, “No. This is impossible. We’ve only been gone for three months…”

X and a handful of Xiliens walked onto the bridge, “That doesn’t look like the right planet…”

Gordon looked down at Ozaki, “Take us to Tokyo.”

---

The Gotengo poked through the clouds and what they saw left everyone speechless. Tokyo wasn’t just in ruins, but it was infested with a strange growth. Massive mushrooms stretched out of buildings and swallowed up entire city blocks. Nothing moved among the grotesque sight. Neither humans nor animals remained, not even birds. Even trees and grass had been assimilated into the vast field of bulbous fungi.

“What the hell is this?” X spoke, tilting his head.

“Ozaki, set us down.” Gordon remained cautious. “Moguera, scan the area. See if you can pick up anything.”

Koji leaned forward, “Scanning commencing…” Instantly, the screens kicked to life. His brows lifted, “This doesn’t make sense, sir. It’s saying there’s vital signs here. Everywhere, all around us!”

Ozaki looked up at Gordon, “How do mushrooms have vital-“

A twisted sound came from the huge growths. Like rolling thunder, the noise then turned into a sickening, grinding screech. What remained of buildings began to collapse into dust as the fungi shifted. Gigan and Megalon landed a few hundred yards away from the Gotengo, each one looking at the other and then back at the strange landscape.

Koji spoke directly into the comm., “Umm… sir?”

“Get ready for battle.”

Ozaki looked up from his seat, “Shall I keep us down?”

“Yes.”

Dan Moroboshi crossed his arms as he watched the mushrooms began to fall away. What appeared to be arms and a head emerged from the body. It was vaguely humanoid, but most of its flesh replaced by the bulbous overgrowth. Only a few patches of overlapping scales and green-hued hair remained.

“I believe that was once Gaira…” Ozaki spoke in total awe.

“Well, it’s about to be completely dead.” Gordon barked, “Moguera, destroy it!”

The massive machine’s yellow eyes surged with fantastic power for but a second before twin streams of searing plasma launched. Each shot was followed by quick bursts of energy that ripped through the air before striking the thing. The creature stood defiant as its body was pelted. A geyser of smoke and fire erupted from the impacts, sending chunks of mushroom and flesh flying in every direction. The thing’s left arm fell from its socket before it collapsed, crashing through what remained of the structure it had emerged from.

“That was too easy…” Kiyoshi commented, “I don’t like this.”

The arm that fell to the ground began to twitch and pulsate. Bones erupted from the open wound, spewing a spray of gore like a demented fountain. Flesh and muscle spiraled into a shape as the very creature reformed from its own arm. At the same time, the original thing pushed off against the rubble of the building, its arm reforming completely.

“Even if that thing was Gaira, his regeneration was never that fast!” Ozaki shouted, “Something is definitely off here!”

Just as the second Gaira stood, its body yet to be overtaken by mushroom growth, Gigan rushed in. The cyborg shrieked, slashing at the Gargantua’s side with his twin chainsaw arms. Before it could even move, the green giant was sliced in half…

But as before, each half began to regenerate into two more abominations…

Ozaki stood up, “No! No! No! I’m not a Kaijuologist, but I know this is not right!”

Megalon bellowed, a bolt of lightning shooting forth from his star-shaped horn. The bolt struck the third Gaira as it formed, carving into its chest and burning a hideous mark in its soft and forming flesh. The ground then began to shake. A great wall of dust and dirt was thrown asunder, causing the Seatopian Beetle to stumble to the side. It waved its drill to the side, striking a massive mushroom…

The mushroom reacted. A tremendous crevice tore through its center, spitting streams of strange fluid. A hiss came from the opening, followed by a serpentine body coated in a thick layer of gray fungus. The creature’s face was engulfed in mushroom, covering up its eyes and nostrils. Its overlapping scales had become fused with the vile material of the overgrowth, each slight movement causing rips to appear in the mushroom coverings. Tiny hands outstretched, breaking the mushrooms that grown across its paws.

“Manda too!?”

The infected sea serpent’s jaws clamped on Megalon’s unsuspecting face. Its lengthy body continued to crawl out of the massive mushroom, deflating it like a balloon in the process. Manda’s fungus-covered body began to constrict Megalon’s flailing body, squeezing tightly. Gigan shrieked, already set to interfere. However, the ground continued to quake and a tremendous, mouth-like fissure opened up before him. From the abyss, a colossal thing emerged. A monstrosity of crimson exoskeleton-like armor and grey mushroom. It was as if a true mushroom with legs and arms, each tipped with numerous, broken claws. Spikes emerged from where its shoulders would be, hinting at the body swallowed up by the fungal overgrowth. A broken horn adorned its frilled head and a pair of wings barely poked out of the gigantic, fleshy dome on its back… it was an overtaken Destoroyah.

Gigan stopped in his tracks as Destoroyah’s mouth split wide, shooting its destructive beam in the process. The cyborg fell backward, screeching while Moguera took aim and fired. But its beams just weren’t powerful enough. Its blazing eyes began to dull as its chest-mounted cannon emerged from its armor. Before it could fire, two Gairas grabbed it from the side. Moguera’s drill activated instantly and its head shot down, driving the rotating weapon into the first Gaira’s skull. Its body went limp as the drill pulverized its forehead and face, spraying blood and brain matter across the machine’s visage and view ports.

The second Gaira positioned itself in front of the cannon, quickly prompting Koji to fire the powerful weapon point blank. A blinding flash was followed by the Green Gargantua being split in half, each half being carried across the cityscape with a burning trail following behind.

Gigan recovered and his crimson eye flashed with burning light. His beam fired, striking Destoroyah’s overtaken face. The Oxygen Destroyer-spawned thing fell to a knee, but through its horrible roars, laughter began to come from the mushrooms that grew everywhere…

All over the place, the mushrooms began to move. What were once kaiju had now become walking hosts for the parasitic growth…

“Sir? Orders…” Koji Shinjo asked repeatedly to Captain Gordon.

“Get us off the ground. Get ready to fallback, I want to-“

The Gotengo shook as mushroom-covered tentacles emerged from the ground and wrapped around the haul. Gezora’s unmistakable chirp added to the laughing fungus as it held the ship fast. “This is the Gotengo! We should be able to break free!”

Ozaki squeezed the controls tightly, fighting to get the ship back into the air. Gezora’s body continued to rise from the ground in which it had buried itself. Its tentacles strained until sickening fluid began to drain from them and the mushrooms growing from it. One snapped like a weak rope, causing the creature to call out. Then another, making its grip loose enough to fail. Gezora hit the ground from a few dozen meters up, its remaining tentacles waving about.

As Destoroyah’s face began to pulsate and regenerate from Gigan’s attack, the cyborg cackled and leaped into the air. The order was given to fallback. However, Megalon was missing…

The lord of the underground kingdoms was trapped. Manda’s massive length and powerful muscles bound him like an anaconda. Its snapping jaws had gripped the base of its horn, holding its head down and steady. The insect God tried to struggle, but he couldn’t move. He could only watch as the Gotengo, Gigan, and Moguera lifted into the air. Its eyes then spotted a mushroom-covered Gaira limping closer. The growths on its body began their booming, insane laughter. It fell to its knees before Megalon’s head and shot forth its arm, stuffing it inside the beetle’s mouth. Megalon began to gag and choke, head thrashing to no avail as the Gargantua forced its fungal arm down his gullet. The insect’s mandibles began to break and splinter as they were stretched far past their limit…

Gaira twisted its arm, breaking it at the elbow. With several yanks, the bone broke free of the flesh and mushroom. Strands of muscle snapped like string as it stood back up, allowing the arm to vanish down Megalon’s mouth. Manda’s constrictions began to loosen and the beetle began to heave, spitting up his own blood mixed with Gaira’s and the fungus covering the arm that it was force fed.

Then it all ceased…

Its arm already regenerating, Gaira stood up as more copies of himself were joined by the infested Gezora and Destroyah. Manda hissed as Megalon’s body stiffened, but his bulbous eyes grew brighter in color. The broken mandibles began to pop back into place, returning to normal. The insect God sat up before climbing back to his feet, looking at the other monsters beside him… His new allies…

---

Gordon held Ozaki back, blocking the young soldier’s path with his arm. “This is HIS fault!” Ozaki shouted, pointing at X and his handful of Xiliens that joined the mission. The leader of the aliens lifted his brows and again raised his hands, trying to assure the humans of their innocence.

“We may be ruthless. Cunning and vile warlords when we want to be, but I assure you human, this is not our doing. We have just as much riding on this planet as you do, I remind you.”

“Liar!”

Gordon barked at both of the squabbling mortals, “Enough!” He pushed Ozaki back with his muscular arm, “This is getting us no where!” He then glared at Dan whom had been mysteriously silent since the battle, “You. What do you say?”

Dan tilted his head, “I say there is a lot more at work than your meager rivalries.” He pushed himself softly off the wall, keeping his hands behind his back. “I’ve read reports of space mushrooms that can infect hosts, Brother Taro even had his run-ins with sentient mushrooms. But nothing to this extent. And I don’t believe the Xiliens have the resources to come up with something like this.” He turned his gaze from the humans to the aliens from Planet X, “Need I remind you that they had to steal Gigan from the Nebulans?” X moved his eyes away from Dan’s glare.

Ozaki breathed a sigh and muttered incoherently before returning to his seat at the controls.

“Our plan hasn’t changed. We’re heading to Okinawa, to where the rescue beacon originated from.” Captain Gordon climbed to his own seat.

“Is there anything even there?” X commented as the ship’s course was decided.

“A research facility from what I know.” Gordon lifted a handful of old, dusty paperwork he had to dig up from the ship’s storage, “… headed by a Dr. Shiragami.”

---

Within the hour, the Gotengo arrived with Gigan and Moguera following shortly behind. As they descended from the white clouds, they were greeted with an image they didn’t expect. The area was mushroom-free. The grass was some of the greenest they had ever seen. The ocean water was clear as crystal. Trees with countless leaves blew in the gentle island breeze. The facility itself, vaguely octagon in shape with a few structures extending from each side, was crisp and clean. It was strange. In a world gone mad, this one patch was perfect.

When the hum of the ship’s engines grew louder, a handful of people emerged from the facility. They lifted their hands, waving at the coming heroes.

“Something isn’t right here.” Ozaki commented as the Gotengo touched down a few hundred meters away from the structure. “It’s too… clean. Too neat and perfect.”

Captain Gordon stood up and placed a hand on Ozaki’s shoulder, “Stay here. If we get into trouble or aren’t back in the hour, take off.”

“I’m coming with you.” Dan commented, standing up, “I have a feeling Ozaki is right.”

“Count me in as well.” X stated, making Gordon and Ozaki look over at him, “What? Do you really think I’m going to stick around and bicker with this guy?” He nodded over to Ozaki, “Yeah… No.”

---

As they exited the ship, Captain Gordon gave the crew of Moguera strict orders to destroy the complex at the first sign of any trouble from within. The three were quickly welcomed by the staff of geneticists and biologists working at the Shiragami Institute for Special Research and Development. “Oh thank God you’re here!” A middle-aged woman declared, spreading her arms, “You have no idea the hell we’ve been going through.” She had to be about Captain Gordon’s age, maybe a few years younger at best. Her red hair was tied back and her form hugged by a white lab coat.

“You are?” The Captain eyed her.

“Elsie Chapman. I work here. Or did, anyway. Now we take refuge here more than anything.” She extended her hand for all three visitors.

“Umm, excuse me, doc. But would you like to explain why this place looks pristine while everything else we’ve seen looks like a mushroom forest?” Dan commented, not shaking her hand when she extended hers to him.

She pulled her hand back and smiled, “You need to speak to the old doctor on that one.” She nodded, “Understandably you’re a bit confused. But you’ll see we have our own form of protection here. You could even say we’re one with Mother Nature around these parts.”

X and Gordon looked at one another as she turned around and waved them to follow, “It’s okay.”

The other scientists followed her lead, returning to the insides of the facility. “You must be wondering what’s going on. Honestly, I can’t even tell you everything. But he can.”

“Who?” X quickly asked as the doors closed behind them.

“Dr. Shiragami. He’s the one who sent out the beacon.”

After a few moments of silence, the group began to dwindle in size as the various other researchers seemed to vanish into surrounding rooms and corridors without a word. “This is his office.” She stated, opening the door. Once again, X and Gordon looked at one another. Dan nodded and entered without hesitation. Once inside, the dimmed lights began to grow brighter. An elderly man spun in his chair, adjusting glasses that were tapped together. “Welcome gentlemen, to my Eden.” He stood up on wiry legs, smiling widely.

“So you sent the rescue beacon?” Captain Gordon asked as Elsie closed the doors behind them.

Dr. Shiragami nodded, “Yes I did. You see, I feared the situation was getting out of control.”

X tilted his head, “Getting? Have you stepped outside of your Eden? It’s out of control.”

The man nodded, “Yes. It’s pretty crazy out there. I apologize for our strangeness. We’ve been without contact from any outsiders for two months now.”

Captain Gordon placed his hands in the pockets of his trench coat, “What happened exactly? Why are there mushrooms everywhere?”

“That would be my fault.” Shiragami admitted, putting the palms of his hands together. “You see my daughter, Erika, and a handful of her friends stumbled upon an island five months ago. They were stranded without food and turned to a bizarre mushroom to survive. This mushroom was unlike anything ever known.” He grabbed a small vile containing a tiny sample of the fungus, “We called it Matango. Once a host eats it, they’re instantly addicted. And the more they eat, the fungus spreads and eventually takes over the host’s body and will slowly but surely turn them into a mushroom.”

“How did it spread though? Across the entire planet?”

Dr. Shiragami lifted a finger, “I tried a lot of things to reverse the effect. Even Godzilla cells, plant cells… Nothing worked. But I had an idea. An illegal idea for its time, but an idea. I had to pull countless strings and call in favors, but I acquired a handful of cells from an alien source…”

Dan’s brows lifted, “You didn’t…”

Dr. Shiragami nodded, “Oh, but I did.” He turned around, “I gave Erika a dose of Orga cells. And these cells saved her life.”

X stepped away from the man, “And I assume that’s when you lost control. Even Xiliens have a ban on Orga cells. They replicate anything they come in contact with.”

Shiragami kept nodding, “Yes. And through the Matango, it gained the ability to infect and take over.” He took a step closer to the ground, “But… I did get my daughter back!”

The same twisted laughter from Tokyo began to come from behind the trio. All three turned their heads over their shoulders, seeing the walls starting to quickly grow into mushrooms. Elsie Chapman’s body began to shift, changing into a younger woman. Her long hair began to retreat back into her skull as her tan skin tone became whiter. The color of her hair began to change, turning black as night as it dangled upon her shoulders.

“You see, God is a very forgiving thing.” Dr. Shiragami stated coldly, “I had to get you here to show you the truth. There is only one way to immortality, and that is through me. I will let you live. Forever.”

Dan lifted his hand, pulling forth his Ultra Eye while Captain Gordon began to unleash the blasts of his side arm laser. The blasts caused Shiragami to stumble back while Dan placed the pair of glasses over his eyes. The mortal’s body transformed instantly, becoming that of the brave Ultra Warrior, Seven.

Shiragami landed on a blossoming Matango while Gordon spun, blasting the shape shifting Erika.

“Forever. Inside me.” Erika finished her father’s words as she fell into the wall, the Matango swallowing her body up like a black hole.

Dr. Shiragami was engulfed by the ballooning mushrooms. The doors sealed behind them as the deranged laughter surrounded them. “This was a God damn trap!” Captain Gordon barked as he began to shoot the Matango. X followed after Gordon tossed him his second weapon.

“Well now what do we do?”

From the darkness of mushrooms, a humanoid figure emerged. The laughter of the Matango began to lessen and a more twisted, broken voice came. “Perhaps I should take a more appropriate form!”

A figure began to rise from the mushrooms. It was dark in appearance, but quickly growing a skeletal structure, muscles, organs, and skin. Blood began to flow through its body before its eyes opened. Ultraseven removed his Eye Slugger from the top of his head, holding the galaxy-famous weapon tightly. “No…”

The thing was taking on a form all too familiar to the Ultra Warrior. The naked man began to spawn clothes made from its very flesh, an orange suit. Black hair began to dangle across his head and a pair of black glasses emerged from its flesh. “Hello, cousin.” It spoke sharply.

“You are not Shin Hayata!”

“Oh. But I am. And soon, I’ll be you too. And then, I’ll be everything!”

Ultraseven threw the Eye Slugger like a boomerang, cutting Hayata’s shoulder deeply. His head hung to the side, his left side nearly cut in half and shooting crimson across the ceiling and floor. The curved blade then circled the room, cutting down numerous Matango that had already become several feet tall. By the time the blade returned to Ultraseven’s hand, Hayata’s body stiffened and the shoulder pulled itself back to the body, healing the grisly wound and the clothes over it.

“There’s no use in fighting me, cousin.” Hayata smiled, “You know I’m right. There’s only one way to attain the universal peace that our kind strives for. And that is through Orga. You must join with us.”

“You’re not an Ultra. You’re not even a human. You’re just some god damn space monster with an ego!” Seven slid the Eye Slugger back into place on his forehead and brought his hands to the beam lamp between his eyes. A beam of green energy flew, striking Hayata in the chest. The imitation of the brave soldier was instantly engulfed in a brilliant glow. The thing didn’t cry out, but instead laughed maniacally as it was pushed back, its entire body turning into embers before erupting into a ball of fire.

Ultraseven began to sweep the beam across the room, vaporizing the mushrooms that were closing in. He cleared the sealed doors and blasted them open, sending a wave of fire through the hallways. “Go!” He ordered, turning around and firing more of the Emerium Ray into the room to destroy everything.

Humanoid Matango freaks began emerging from every room, trying to stop their escape. Blasting through the hordes of bizarre things, Captain Gordon and X kicked open the entrance doors. They nearly fell at what they saw. The Gotengo was already lifting into the air as the grass and trees were changing forms. Gigantic crevices were forming, swallowing up sections of the complex.

Gordon and X began to wave their arms, but the Gotengo was unable to see them in the carnage. Suddenly, their bodies were lifted into the air. Ultraseven flew from the structure, grabbing both of them in his arms. Their combined weights were nothing as he carried them back to the Gotengo, placing them on the top side so they could climb in through one of the emergency exits.

Gigan shrieked and Moguera hovered in place, each watching as the entire facility fell into the Earth and was replaced by a blossoming mushroom. The robot began to fire, shooting blasts of plasma from its eyes. The streams of burning energy detonated like firecrackers on the bark of a tree, doing little damage to the massive growth. Ultraseven stood on the outside of the Gotengo as it got higher up, past both Gigan and Moguera.

“Ozaki, get us out of here!” Captain Gordon demanded as he and X entered the bridge.

“What the hell is going on? Where’s Dan?”

“The entire thing is Orga. Everything going on, it’s all Orga!”

The tremendous mushroom began to split like an eggshell. A titanic roar was followed by booming laughter. Tendrils of plants erupted from the ground, reaching up. From the tips, mushrooms exploded into tooth-lined jaws.

“Behold my child!” Dr. Shiragami’s voice erupted from the Matango, “My daughter, myself, and God fused with Mother Nature: Biollante!”

A tendril ensnared Moguera’s left foot, holding it tightly while Gigan flew around, avoiding the whip-like weapons. Ultraseven dove from the hull of the Gotengo, his size rapidly increasing. He fired his Emerium Beam, cutting the tentacle that captured Moguera in half. The rest of the abomination emerged from the colossal Matango. It was a freak, a walking mountain of vegetation, mushrooms, and teeth. Lots and lots of teeth within an oversized, crocodilian muzzle.

“You shall join us and see the path to immortality can only be achieved this way! There is no other way!” Countless voices came from within Biollante’s tremendous size and escaped from its monstrous maw.

Gigan’s saws revved to life as tentacles came at him from every direction. He began to spin, cutting through the things like a weed whacker. The abomination’s mammoth jaws shot open, bellowing its thunderous wail for miles. Lines of emerald power began surging through its vile flesh and mushrooms before gathering in its muzzle. Again its jaws parted, but a roar didn’t come forth. Instead, of a geyser of sizzling, green fluid was spat. Gigan ducked low, barely avoiding the spray. However, the thing twisted its colossal body in mid-spray, hitting Moguera’s right side. Its mighty armor began to sizzle and steam, instantly making warning lights spin inside the cockpit.

“It’s some sort of acid!” Koji shouted as he began switching off the loud sirens.

“Give it a taste of an SGM!” Akira Yuki slammed his fists down on the machine’s controls.

With its side still steaming, Moguera spun in the air. Its left, cone-shaped hand pointed down at the half-plant monstrosity. The cones then popped up with a hiss, revealing a colossal missile within. Before Biollante could react, the warhead shot. A blast of smoke and fire engulfed Moguera’s arm as its mighty weapon fired. The warhead struck the top of Biollante’s head, its rotating top drilling into its skull for but a brief moment before detonating. The sheer force of the blast sent her top half crashing down while blowing a hole in its cranium so wide that it could birth an adult whale.

Before it could recover, Ultraseven landed with a thud. He crossed his arms into a T-shape while summoning vast internal energy. A brilliant beam of blue and white energy shot forth, crashing into her downed jaws. The Wide Shot fired for several moments, each passing second stripping entire layers of flesh and mushroom from its twisted form until, finally, a blossoming explosion erupted from where Biollante was. Its entire body was swallowed up, shooting meteor-like chunks of burning bits across the landscape.

Ultraseven’s chest rolled as he parted his arms and slowly lowered them to his sides. “Too easy.” He declared to himself as his reflective, yellow eyes watched the spiraling tower of fire.

Before anyone had a moment to breath, tentacles shot forth from the ground in every direction. They coiled around Ultraseven, restraining the brave warrior like a swarm of angry pythons. Gigan’s saws kicked back to life as he dodged the whipping limbs, but a spear-tipped tendril seeming came out of no where. His cybernetic mandibles and beak parted, unleashing a high-pitched cry as the tendril tore through his chest and erupted from his back, between its fin-like sails. Moguera’s other arm pointed down and cone parted, but just as the second Spiral Grenade Missile fired, a wall of vines materialized, taking the hit.

More tentacles then came, wrapping around Moguera’s body. The monolith was dragged down to the ground, firing wildly in an attempt to free itself.

“Brace for impact!” Koji shouted.

The machine hit back-first, cratering the ground in the process. Sparks erupted from its joints and its left eye popped out of socket, hanging by just a few strands of wires and electrical cords. The tendrils began to reel the robot in…

The Gotengo flew higher, but from its hull, numerous beams of maser power opened fire on the incoming volleys of tendrils. Several of them were blown to pieces, but others managed to grab hold of the battleship…

From the massive fire that spawned from the previous attacks, Biollante emerged with its body already regenerating entirely. Its cruel eyes blinked and jaws slobbered. Its head lifted, revealing its neck. Within that neck, its flesh began to shift. The vines and mushrooms that made its entire being began to split open and fall away. Two holes appeared, then two smaller ones grouped closer together underneath them. Then a final, wider hole opened underneath those. Inside the first two, eyeballs began to take shape. The second set began to grow outward, becoming a nose. Then the final became a mouth. It was a humanoid face appearing on Biollante’s throat. It was the face of its creator: Dr. Shiragami. The mouth smiled.

“You should have made this easy on yourselves and joined us.”

Ultraseven struggled as his limbs were bonded tightly.

“Why struggle, cousin?”

“I’m not your cousin!” Ultraseven shouted in rage. In his anger, he managed to snap one of the tendrils, but two more quickly replaced it.

Thick streams of black fluid rolled from Gigan’s wound and upon the tentacle impaling him. However, the cyborg was still alive. His crimson visor flashed and its chainsaws revved to life. It swung low, cutting the tentacle off that had stabbed him. Biollante’s gaze looked up as the alien began to fall. Its mouth opened wider, spitting its deadly fluid at the airborne kaiju. Gigan’s eye flashed, firing back. His Cluster Light Ray struck the acid spray head-on, blasting the stream apart. He circled the mountain of flesh once before small openings on his chest opened up. A pair of circular disks shot out.

The disks flew around Biollante and went directly for Moguera, skidding across the ground before severing the tentacles dragging it closer. The machine came to a stop. Its remaining eye flashed with light as its boosters kicked on, returning it to a standing position. Both of its arms pointed at Biollante and twin streams of purple energy fired, blasting its stomach.

Dr. Shiragami’s face glared. “Why must you resist so much!?”

The disks continued across the ground before reaching Ultraseven, cutting through the vines holding his arms and legs. The warrior shouted in fury, “You haven’t seen anything yet!” He lifted his hands, removing the Eye Slugger from his forehead.

At the same time, the disks then shot up, cutting a path through the many vines that had ensnared the Gotengo. Pieces of the vegetation began fall, bouncing across the landscape with mighty thuds while the disks returned to Gigan like a boomerang, vanishing back into his chest cavity.

The resistance surrounded Biollante, but this fact seemed lost on Shiragami. The demented face grinned, showing rows of pointed teeth composed of Biollante’s vines. The crocodilian snout of the behemoth opened once more, bellowing a trumpeting noise. The rolling sound deafened everyone and muted all other noises coming from the group. Ultraseven squeezed his Eye Slugger, “Enough of this!” He shouted, throwing the weapon. The blade shot through dozens of vines, sending dozens of bits and pieces falling to the mushroom-covered Earth. The abomination snarled, its doll-like eyes locking on the crimson warrior. The face on its neck sneered.

Already, the tentacles that had been cut to shreds began to regenerate. Instead of snapping, Venus flytrap-like jaws, razor-sharp spears took their place…

From behind, Gigan’s Cluster Light Ray detonated, wrapping a blanket of small explosions around its sides. The creature’s head turned and more tentacles lifted up, but Gigan’s circular disks shot out once more, taking out every incoming tendril precisely.

… A new sound came from the darkened heavens…

Gigan and Ultraseven looked up. Something was coming down at high speeds. It was a living creature, like a bat. The face of Shiragami began to laugh, “Come to me…” It chuckled as Biollante’s head lifted up and jaws parted. But then its mouth split even more so, tearing its skull apart. Green ooze spilled from either side as its gapping mouth somehow became even bigger! The flying newcomer shrieked again. As it got nearer, it became obvious what it was. It was a Gyaos. Infested by the Matango, it too had become one with the sadistic Orga plague. Its brown flesh was now matted with fungus. Its wings were torn up, but it could still retain its high speeds of flight. And now it had been summoned to aid. It already knew what to do…

Biollante’s mouth continued to split until the torn flesh was down into her stomach basin. The Gyaos flew down with a final call. Its wings tucked into its sides as it fell directly into Biollante’s monstrous jaws. The widened muzzle clamped shut like a bear trap, engulfing the Gyaos. The flying nightmare was instantly gone. Biollante’s eyes widened and its flesh began to darken. “Now see the true power of a God!” Dr. Shiragami’s voice boomed as his face briefly began to take the shape of Gyaos’ before returning to the man’s.

The plant-like flesh of the abomination became soft and rubbery. Its many tentacles stiffened, developing thick veins. The tips of its tentacles expanded into balloon-like mushrooms before popping with a sickening noise and fluid. Now replacing the flytrap-like jaws were Gyaos heads…

“Take cover!” Koji demanded as the multitude of Gyaos heads looked upon the last of humanity’s hopes.

The pilot of Moguera already knew what was about to come. The machine boosted into the air, as did Gigan. Ultraseven didn’t react fast enough. The heads of the bat-like kaiju spat beams of yellow light. The hero yelped deeply as he was flung back, the sonic cutters leaving dark scorch marks across his upper torso and shoulders. The Gotengo flew in from the side, her hull withstanding the assault of cutting beams. The spinning drill surged with power. A beam fired back, searing the side of the freak.

Biollante unleashed an unholy sound of that of her own and Gyaos’ mixed together. Its cruel eyes looked upon the warship and her mouth opened. Green energy began to gather in her throat. However, Gigan came in from the side. His chainsaws sliced into her neck, spraying a thick wash of green ooze across his cybernetic form. Responding quickly, three sonic beams came from no where. One of them bounced off his dark armor, but the other two clipped his crimson fins. He spiraled to the side, a long trail of smoke following in his wake.

Its gaze again returned to the Gotengo. Captain Gordon ordered the ship to fallback, but the spray of acid came quickly. It splashed against her hull. The overlapping plates of thick steel began to sizzle and soften. Plumes of smoke began to rise and fires grew. Inside the command deck, warning lights flashed and sounds blared.

“Get us out of here!” X shouted as the entire vessel rocked violently.

“Losing power on Engine One!” Ozaki shouted as he struggled to keep the ship at bay.

Several tentacles hit the ship from the side, throwing it to the ground in a titanic crash…

Moguera flew in, its optic shooting blasts of plasma energy. Its arms pointed ahead, auto-lasers opening up. The assault of energy blasted small bits out of the thing’s body, but the wounds sealed up like mud filling a hole. Shiragami began to chuckle, “Stop fighting it. You will soon see that this is all useless. Mankind is destined to join with us.” Dozens of Gyaos headed tendrils lifted off the dead ground. Their jaws popped open, spilling saliva in rolls before beams of yellow power speared the air.

The cutters hit Moguera, splintering against the robot’s hull. The robot landed with a thud, its armor withstanding the assault of sonic cutter beams. The behemoth bellowed in fury as green lines of energy surged through its stomach region, across Shiragami’s face, and finally into the depths of its muzzle.

“Oh no you don’t!” Koji shouted in the cockpit as Moguera’s right cone popped open. A Spiral Grenade Missile shot forth, striking Shiragami’s face in the forehead. The face was blown to bits, sending a shower of monstrous flesh in every direction. The abomination’s head rolled back, the flesh splitting in half as the acid spray it was preparing fountained from the opening in its neck.

Gigan shrieked, flying in out of nowhere. He lifted his double chainsaw arms with blurring speed. Already, the gapping wound began to seal up. Before it could finish, both sets came crashing down with a sickening grind. Green gore splattered across the cyborg’s body as he cut through Biollante’s exposed, wounded neck. The furious roars of the behemoth began to shift into gurgles as Gigan’s saws cut through the bones of its neck.

Gigan stepped back, his saws sizzling from Biollante’s blood. The head of the creature fell, a few strands of flesh snapping like twigs. Its body fell into a slump, the multitude of tentacles falling…

Ultraseven crawled to his feet, shaking his head and rubbing his burnt body. “Good work.” The hero commented, looking at both Moguera and Gigan. The Xilien war machine cackled and nodded in response as it revved its chainsaws, splattering the green ooze across the ground in the process.

… But it was not over.

Biollante’s headless body lifted up. From the stump, the flesh began to bubble and pulsate. A pair of green, serrated claws emerged from the ruined body, followed by a round head with bulbous, compound eyes. Mandibles clanged together and antennae extended… It was a Kamacuras.

Inside the Command Deck of the Gotengo, X shouted out. “Stop that from escaping!”

Moguera’s other arm opened and extended outward. The Spiral Grenade Missile fired, but the Kamacuras shot out with blurring speed. It jumped sky high just as the missile made impact, obliterating the remains of Biollante in an expanding mushroom cloud of smoke and fire…

The insect flew faster as Gigan took chase. No matter how fast the cyborg could fly, the mantis could move faster and vanished into the churning skies. The creature escaped…

The entire ecosystem of the island began to collapse. Vast mushrooms disintegrated into grey ash that covered the ground like a thick snow storm. Moguera landed with a thud, sparks erupting from its damaged eye. Gigan growled, looking around and lifting his metallic foot, shaking the dust off as the last of the mushrooms died. Captain Gordon stood from his seat, “Don’t get to comfortable.” He spoke sternly, “This is far from over. Make quick repairs, we’re going after it.”

X crossed his arms, “We don’t have much time. It’s going to recoup, regenerate, and reorganize.”

Ozaki looked up, “How do you know?”

The alien warlord looked down at the young human, “Because it’s still just an Orga. Through all of its mutations and powers, it’s still just an Orga. It simply wants to feed and exist. And we pose a legitimate threat to its existence. It’s going to do anything it can to stop…” The doors of the command deck slid open. “… Him.” X nodded to Dan as he walked in with a limp.

All eyes in the command deck looked at the hero. “Why him?” Ozaki questioned.

“Because he’s an Ultra. Of everything on Earth, he’s the one who can send the message out for the rest of the Space Garrison to…”

Dan groaned as he took a seat, “Cleanse this planet.” He sighed, rubbing his forehead, “That damn thing packs a nasty punch.” He shook his head and closed his eyes, “It has no way off this rock yet. And no way to survive for extended periods on alien worlds. It’s pretending to be smart only because that’s what it thinks it is.” His eyes opened slowly.

“What’s with the God complex?” Gordon leaned against the railing.

Dan’s brows lifted and lowered for a few seconds. “I imagine that’s what some of its victims believed…”

“And it gained that concept from them. Thus that is what it believes it is.” X finished Dan’s statements as the wounded warrior leaned back and closed his eyes once more.

“Moguera, how are you holding up?” Gordon spoke into the comm. The three men inside began to speak as a group, each saying different things. “I can’t understand a damn thing any of you are saying. Yuki, give me a count.”

Akira Yuki looked over at his two co-pilots and gave them a toothy grin. “Right eye cannon is out of function entirely, but left is in good shape. Power core is at 65%, so we have maybe one or two more big fights left before we’re out. Chest cannon has good ten or so blasts worth of power left and we have thirteen more of those beautiful Spiral Grenade Missiles.”

Sato chuckled, reaching over and patting Koji’s chest. “Those things really kick ass, man.”

Yuki cleared his throat, “Armor is also holding up at 70% where we were hit by the acid.” He then looked over at Koji.

“As you can see, boss, we’re ready for another bout. So what’s our next move?”

Gordon looked across the command deck of the Gotengo, “We go hunting. X, can you help us locate where it went?”

The alien lifted his brow and smiled, “Give me a few minutes alone here to contact one of our outposts…”

---

Outside of the bridge, Ozaki remained awkwardly silent as the realization set in. Orga had spread like wildfire from one corner of the world to the other. Entire cities must have been lost, countless lives assimilated. Including his own family’s. As if picking up on his thoughts, Dan placed a hand on the young man’s shoulder. “I don’t believe what you’re thinking is accurate, Ozaki.”

He lifted his gaze from the floor to that of the Space Garrison member. “What?”

“Orgas require vast amounts of fresh DNA to sustain life. If it existed this long, that means it has learned to keep its food source alive like you do cattle. There’s no way it has assimilated all of mankind.”

Gordon looked over at the pair, “I sure hope so. I don’t think this train of thought has reached the rest of the crew or crew of Moguera yet, and I’d like this battle to be over before it does.”

Ozaki looked back down at the floor and rested his head on the wall. No matter what Dan said, he couldn’t help fear the worst for his family back in Hokkaido. Captain Gordon wouldn’t admit it, but he had this same fear when they arrived. Dan crossed his arms and walked away before turning to lean against the opposite wall. They had to wait for X to finish…

After a good forty-five minutes, X emerged from the command deck. He held his hands in front of him as he looked at Gordon, Ozaki, and the rest of the human crew. “They’re beginning an orbital scan now.” The young alien declared with a big smile, “They’ll find it.”

---

Within the hour, the Gotengo, Gigan, and Moguera lifted off of the dead ground. The Xiliens came through with their word. They located what they believed was the location of the primary Orga. It had turned Osaka into one giant mushroom. The metropolis was completely overgrown and what few buildings emerged from the vast forest of fungus was overshadowed by the mushroom the size of Mount Fuji…

As they grew closer, their eyes widened in shock and horror. Koji flicked on the scans and the readings were clear. “We got organic life all around.”

“Radar contacts!” Ozaki shouted from the bridge. Before anyone could react, sonic beams began to strike the battleship. Sparks erupted from the cockpit as the assault pushed the vessel down.

Gigan shrieked, his visor flickering red. His beam shot forth, striking two of the four Matango-fied Gyaos. Their bodies detonated in midair, sending bits and pieces of burning flesh raining down.

Gordon stood up, “Okay ladies and gentlemen, get ready! This is it! There’s no turning back now!”

Moguera buzzed ahead of the battleship, letting loose with volleys of its plasma eye beams. A path of fire was carved across the landscape as it targeted the signatures of life its scanners could pick up. As the beams rained down hell, the mushrooms began to split like giant eggs. Monsters emerged, bellowing their war cries to the oncoming resistance to the Orga infestation. Destoroyah was again a lead challenger, spreading its wings from its bulbous back. Its jaws parted and a shrill cry was followed by its Oxygen Destroyer Beam. Moguera banked to the left, dodging the attack while pointing its coned arms at the monstrosity. The auto-lasers fired, hitting the thing with both strikes.

Gigans saws began to rev. He lowered, firing again as both Anguirus and Baragon emerged from a mushroom. Their saurian features were muted by the disgusting fungal growths covering them head to toe. Baragon’s usual trumpeting call was muffled by half of its face being covered in bulbous mushrooms. The cyborg blasted the quadruped dinosaur with his Cluster Light Ray, hitting it dead center beneath its cranial horn. The dinosaur leaned back with a cry, its head now caught aflame. The Matango coating it began to fall off, along with its diseased flesh.

Anguirus crawled back, growling. Behind it, the ground shifted. A multitude of spindly legs erupted from the overgrowth. A clicking noise came from the dust cloud, followed by eight purple eyes. It was Kumonga. The massive spider’s body was covered in small mushrooms with one larger one on top of its thorax. The arachnid’s mandibles parted, shooting webs at the incoming Gigan. The cyborg’s saws pointed in front of it, but the webs acted like glue. They began to choke and clog the rotating blades.

Gigan flew to the side, blasting his saws with his own beam to clear the webs. Suddenly, two Gyaos flew in low. They collided with the Xilien kaiju, forcing it downward. Gigan shrieked, hitting with a severe impact. The skyscraper-sized mushrooms wobbled back and forth from the impact as the ground shook. The two Gyaos continued to scream their hatred, firing blindly into the expanding ball of dust.

Inside the Gotengo, Dan Moroboshi looked at Captain Gordon. “I’m going in.”

The human nodded, “Remember the plan. They distract. You find and kill the real one.”

Dan grinned, “Do you remember who you’re talking to?”

Dan pulled out the Ultra Eye, instantly transforming into Ultraseven in front of everyone. The hero was then engulfed in a brilliant flash of white light. He teleported outside of the battleship…

As the Ultra Warrior expanded in size, his eyes looked down. From the forest of Matango, a swarm of insects began to come to life. Emerging from the mushrooms, the green exoskeletons of a slew of Kamacuras appeared. Their mandibles clicked and screeched. Their wings expanded and claws clanged. Quickly, they were airborne. Ultraseven removed his Eye Slugger. He threw it at the incoming insects. The blade swung around, circling around and striking the insects numerous times. Their bodies began to fall apart, being slaughtered by the swirling blade. The last of the Kamacuras got within range, but Ultraseven fired his Emerium Ray just as the Eye Slugger returned. The emerald beam tore into the Kamacuras’ face, ripping out the end of its body before sending each half up in a blossoming explosion.

Moguera landed with a titanic thud. Its eye blasted non-stop as the sluggish Destoroyah turned to face the robot. Just as it did, the machine’s left hand popped open. A Spiral Grenade Missile was cast out. The abominable kaiju was too slow to react. The warhead struck its Matango-covered chest. The powerful explosion sent a cascading ball of hell high and made the monstrous thing stumble back. It bellowed as energy raced from its horn and into its tooth-lined maw. The Oxygen Destroyer Beam fired once more, striking Moguera in the torso. The machine was able to cope with little difficulty, trading beams with the monster via its auto-lasers.

Suddenly, something crashed into Moguera from behind. The robot slid forward with its treads as muscular arms held it. Its upper body began to rotate, causing the newcomer to release it. The monster was Gaira! The Green Gargantua shrieked its horrible sound, but was cut short by a quick blast by a Spiral Grenade Missile. The missile struck its chest and tore into it deeply before detonating, blowing the freak’s body in half. It was just the distraction Destoroyah needed, however. The abomination moved as fast as its bulky legs would allow and closed the distance, swiping down with an energized horn. Sparks erupt from both inside and outside of Moguera as it was forced down, the armor across its back and shoulder sizzling.

The machine’s head rotated on its shoulders. Its drill activated and it lunged, driving the rotating spike into the kaiju’s midsection. A vile, green fluid sprayed across Moguera’s frame as it used its drill to burrow through Destroyah’s exoskeleton. The spawn howled in rage and pushed away, stumbling back as its wound sprayed its blood for just a few moments before strangely sealing up.

Gigan stood up, swiping at the air with his chainsaws. One Gyaos escaped, but the second was clipped. Its leg came off with a disgusting snap. As it shrieked, Gigan’s eye fired once more and caught the shadow of evil in midair, blowing it to bits with a single, fiery shot. He turned around, just in time to spot both Anguirus and Baragon rushing in like enraged rhinos. He jumped into the air, dodging both of them. Baragon spun, its jaws opening and spitting a stream of energized heat. The heat ray washed across Gigan’s dark armor, quickly making the areas it hit glow bright. The cyborg cackled, spreading his arms and shooting his notorious cutter disks once more. The two disks came down with minds of their own, cutting into both Anguirus and Baragon.

The armored kaiju was protected, but Baragon faired much worse. The disks ripped in and out of him numerous times, each strike cutting entire chunks off of its flesh. Their painful wails echoed throughout the battlefield, muffling the noise as Gigan’s saws kicked to life again. He flew in low, landing with a titanic thud on Baragon’s back. He drove his dangerous weapons downward, sandwiching Baragon’s neck with them. As Anguirus barked and carried on from his own cutter disk damage, Gigan proceeded to cut the brown-hued saurian’s throat. A geyser of crimson sprayed upward, along with chunks of flesh and bone several meters in diameter. A downpour of blood fell from Baragon’s jaws as they went limp. His glowing nasal horn began to dim. In just a few moments, the subterranean titan’s head fell limp, its spine snapping like a twig. The rest of its body followed, falling against the ground.

Standing straight, Gigan cackled. The cyborg clanged his saws together as he summoned his razor disks back, allowing Anguirus to roll away. The dinosaur was horribly maimed with countless cuts and gashes across his limbs and protective carapace…

The Gotengo opened fire as Gyaos and Kamacuras swarmed in. Masers fired in every direction, blasting the airborne monsters with every amount of firepower the ship could muster. However, it wasn’t enough. One Gyaos landed on her hull. Then a Kamacuras. Followed by more and more. The increasing weight was overpowering the ship’s engines. Captain Gordon gritted his teeth as he held the sides of his seat tightly. “We’re going down!”

Ozaki pressed the controls, activating the ship’s drill. One Gyaos was caught and quickly pulverized by the massive drill…

BOOM!

Despite taking numerous enemies with it, the Gotengo came to a sudden crash. Her nose stabbed the ground, breaking the mushroom-covered streets and breaking into the infested subways underneath. She kept firing at the swarming monsters, but it was no good. For each one that fell, it seemed as if three replaced it.

Gigan backed away as the wounded Anguirus approached the beheaded Baragon. The cyborg’s head tilted as the horned saurian’s jaws began to split down its body, breaking the flesh of its own shoulders and chest cavity, exposing its ribcage. The blossoming mouth grabbed hold of Baragon like a snake would oversized prey. Teeth sunk into the dinosaur’s flesh, drawing streams of crimson. Then they began to close, drawing the headless Baragon into its own body. Anguirus’ body began to pulsate, becoming bulkier. From either side of its head, Baragon’s ear-like flaps expanded. Its short horn extended like a sword, developing a haunting glow. The ankylosaur’s claws became larger and mole like. The spikes covering its carapace began to glow and its grey flesh developed a brown tint…

Anguirus had become a fusion of itself and Baragon!

The hybrid’s jaws fell low, releasing a haunting growl. A blast of its searing heat ray fired, charring Gigan’s battle worn armor. The cyborg cackled, stumbling back as fire sizzled across his torso. He fired back, but the strange thing jumped with surprising agility, landing a distance away. It fired again, this time hitting Gigan’s sails by the side. Gigan hissed, turning to face it once more. But the thing jumped out of his view once more…

Suddenly a titanic blow hit Gigan from the opposite side. The hybrid had curled itself into a ball and used this form to run down the cyborg. Gigan’s disks launched instantly, buzzing around his body like protective drones. Still, they couldn’t catch the speedy thing… but they did get something else…

Rising from the ground, the serpentine body of Manda lashed out like a demonic scorpion tail. Its jaws came within inches of clamping around Gigan’s neck, but the disks zoomed in with surgical precession. The serpent God of Mu moaned softly before its sounds turned to gurgles. The disks cut through the base of its skull, decapitating it as well.

Just as the head fell to the ground, the blurring speed of the Baragon-Anguirus hybrid came down upon it. It grabbed the skull of Manda in its blocky jaws and jumped away, dodging Gigan’s saws once more. It then landed, giving the cyborg a brief moment to witness Manda’s head vanish down into its throat. Its body then began to pulsate once more, falling flat against the ground. Its rough, brown-colored skin began to darken and grow into overlapping, snake-like scales. The outer horns of Anguirus’ crown began to extend backward, branching out into the antlers of Manda. The hybrid’s tail lifted up and waved back and forth as a line of spines ripped from the center of it and raced down to the base of the tail. The tip of the tail itself exploded into a bulbous mushroom of flesh and bone before popping into the snapping jaws of Manda that now loomed over its deranged form like a scorpion’s tail.

Gigan tilted his head and lifted his saws while forked tongues tasted the air from both of its terrifying heads…

Ultraseven began to slow as he approached the massive mushroom. His size began to dwindle, becoming too small for that of the monstrous things to notice as he flew between and underneath the Kamacuras and Gyaos swarms that Orga was summoning. He came down, standing tall and looking over his shoulder. Thus far, the plan was working. Orga seemed distracted with Gigan, Moguera, and the Gotengo. He then looked ahead and began slowly approaching the mushroom…

Moguera slid away from Destoroyah, but the abomination continued to spit its death rays and close the distance with its aggressive horn attacks. Inside the cockpit, the three pilots struggled. Yuki shouted as the machine rocked violently, “Give me complete control!”

Koji looked over his shoulder, “Are you insane!?”

The oldest of the three pilots shook his head, “I have faster reflexes than you. I need control of the arms!”

Koji and Sato looked at one another for a brief moment before nodding. “Transferring complete limb control.”

After a few commands were entered, Yuki was given his request. The machine suddenly went still as Destoroyah lashed out with its deadly tail, bringing it around the side and pummeling Moguera with it. The machine staggered, but Yuki was right about his reflexes. No sooner than the tail pulled away, both of Moguera’s cylinder arms lashed out like bats, bludgeoning the monster’s side. The creature’s shrill cry sounded as its horn surged with Micro Oxygen. Just before it could utilize its destructive capabilities, Moguera’s left arm thrust forward and cone opened, firing a Spiral Grenade Missile point blank. The crimson kaiju’s body arched inward as the power blew apart its chest cavity. Its legs briefly lifted off the ground and jaws spewed a vile, green fluid. Before it could recover, Moguera’s upper torso spun around, swinging its cone hands.

“Yeah, Yuki! Gun-Fu its ass!” Sato shouted as the machine came to a sudden stop, firing another Spiral Grenade Missile point blank.

Destoroyah howled as another gapping wound formed across its chest. It staggered back, wings expanding from its fungal back. Moguera closed the distance, spinning its torso and arms. Blasts of Micro-Oxygen flew in every direction as the thing tried slowing it, but it was futile. Another quick shot again made Destoroyah stagger away, “Koji, get ready with the chest maser!”

Almost on cue, Destoroyah lashed out with its energy horn. Moguera’s treads carried it to the side, dodging the blast. Its body turned to face the robot, but the chest beam fired mere meters away from it. The monster was carried back,its weakened and in-process of regenerating chest giving way. The powerful beam of plasma burned through its exoskeleton and forming Matangos like a hot knife through butter. A hole, big enough to fit Moguera’s head in, was blown through its chest… Destoroyah fell to its knees.

Moguera’s arms lowered slowly, “The joints were never made to move that fast, Yuki. We’re starting to overheat!”

Koji bit his lip, annoyed. Suddenly, the scanners came to life… Something was coming in from the side.

During their battle with the freakish Destoroyah, the Gaira they had blown in half recovered. A line of thick mushrooms grew across its chest to its groin, holding its body together. Kumonga had seemingly merged with it now. The arachnid’s face was positioned where its naval would be. Its eight legs stretched out from its sides, replacing Gaira’s humanoid arms.

“Oh hell no!” Koji lifted Moguera’s arms. The chest beam, remaining eye plasma beam, and auto-lasers fired in direct unison.

The deranged hybrid hissed as it was blasted back with Earth’s most powerful weaponry. A colossal, blossoming explosion engulfed the nightmarish visage of the freak. The towering inferno swallowed the thing up, leaving nothing but a burning streak across the ground. Nothing remained on the ruined landscape except for fire, a streak of crimson, and a few broken, twitching limbs…

“I think you got it.” Sato declared coolly.

Koji shook his head, “I hate spiders…”

The chimera that was attacking Gigan shrieked loudly. It jumped aside, dodging Gigan’s Cluster Light Ray once more. The serpentine body that acted as its tail fired a translucent ray of orange heat, again scalding Gigan’s armor. The cyborg cackled, clanging his saws together. The abomination hissed from both its deranged jaws as Gigan lowered his body. The teeth of his chainsaws began to spin once again. The creature lunged, causing Gigan to thrust his saws into the ground. Like a tank, the cyborg was carried forward by the teeth of his saws. The monsters charged.

The hybrid leaped aside. Gigan’s head turned, quickly firing his beam. The crimson light struck the beast, spreading across its body in a blanket of fire. The thing howled from both sets of jaws as the fire began to spread across its frame. Instead of burning away, its flesh seemed change color, glowing bright. Gigan stood up, lashing out with his bladed tail. The creature ducked low, avoiding the swipe before leaping and slashing with flaming claws. The claws clanged across Gigan’s side, ripping downward and carving glowing trenches across his shoulders.Gigan’s body spun wildly, taking the chimera by surprise and catching it with his swirling chainsaws. The monster fell away with a scream, its serpentine jaws spitting another heat ray. Gigan lifted his left chainsaw, allowing the translucent ray of light hit it, quickly making the metallic weapon glow like the sun.

Ultraseven looked around as he ventured into the Matango kingdom that the primary Orga no doubt called home. His eyes glowed in the darkness and allowed him to see the various, fungal passages. As he pressed on, he could hear both the sounds of humans and those that… weren’t. A strange shape appeared within the shadows. It was an insect. A gigantic insect. Six legs carried its segmented body, along with a pair of mantis-like claws. Bulbous, green eyes looked at the hero curiously. It was a Meganulon, a member of Megaguirus’ brood.

It moved forward with creaking, segmented joints. Ultraseven readied himself, lifting his hands to grasp his Eye Slugger. The insect hissed and charged faster, its slime-covered mandibles snapping hungrily. The warrior removed the Eye Slugger and ran forward, ducking its swiping claws and driving the Eye Slugger into its exposed underside. He then dragged it upward, almost cleaving off its head with one swift movement. The insect stumbled forward for a few steps before collapsing. Placing the bloody weapon back on his forehead, Ultraseven turned around. Already, the insect was starting to regenerate.

He brought his fingers to the green gem between his eyes. The Emerium Beam fired, blasting its carcass. A fireball spread across its exoskeleton, quickly vaporizing every inch of its body with the notorious attack. As its body burned, Ultraseven turned around. He ventured to where the creature came from. Once inside, he stopped in his tracks. His suspicions were proven correct. It was a chamber filled with Matango growths acting as prisons. Within each cell, dozens of people. Some even contained animals. Upon seeing the crimson hero, several began to call out for help and to be rescued.

Ultraseven shook his head, “I can’t. Not yet. I’m sorry.” He declared sorrowfully and pressed on with his journey, apologizing to those stuck within. He couldn’t let them out yet, not with the battle raging outside. At least in here, they were safe. The prison was large, at least ten stories high and a mile long. It contained thousands, if not millions, of prisoners for the enemy to later consume periodically. He looked down at the ground, trying to block out their pleas until they couldn’t be heard anymore. Eventually, the corridor came to an end and narrowed into a smaller pathway. He could spot more shadows moving around him, but these ones didn’t attack. Instead, they seemed to move out of his way.

Orga knew he was coming…

“Hello, cousin.” The voice of Shin Hayata declared just as Ultraseven entered another corridor.

Ultraseven stopped. He looked around, clenching his fists tightly. “You’ve used this form for long enough, don’t you think?”

From the walls of mushrooms, the body of Shin Hayata stepped out. He grinned widely while shaking his head, “But I like this form.”

Ultraseven removed his Eye Slugger and brought it down to his side. “I’m not here to talk things out with a Space Beast.”

Hayata reached into the pocket of his blue jacket, pulling out a teal, cylinder object. “Then there’s no point in convincing you why to join with us. Instead, I’ll just force you.” He thrust his arm, holding the device, into the air. His thumb pressed a small button on its side. Immediately, Hayata’s form was engulfed in a brilliant white light. Ultraseven stepped back as the light increased in size and took a humanoid form. Hayata transformed into Ultraman!

The former hero of light looked down at Ultraseven. He spread his arms, laughing deeply. “I’ll crush you and absorb you!”

Ultraseven lifted both arms to his side, increasing his size as well. He quickly matched his legendary cousin and brother in arms in size. For a brief moment, the giants from the Land of Light eyed one another up. “So it has come to this. This is how the fate of the Earth will be determined?”

Ultraman’s head tilted, “Ironic, isn’t it? Ultra against Ultra? Cousin against cousin? Brother against brother!?”

“Hero against monster…”

Ultraman swung out with a clenched fist, his eyes burning with malice. “I am a God! Not a monster!”

Ultraseven ducked low, allowing the punch to hit nothing and slamming his own fists into his cousin’s stomach. Ultraman stumbled back with a groan as Ultraseven lunged, wrapping both arms around Ultraman’s midsection. He pushed him back, pressing him against the wall of the massive mushroom they were fighting in. Ultraman lifted his hands over his head, combining his fists into one and driving them into Ultraseven’s back. The crimson giant fought through the pain as he tried bulldozing his former comrade through the Matango.

Ultraman drove his knee upward, smashing it into Ultraseven’s face. The giant released his hold and stepped back. Pushing off of the wall, Ultraman crossed his arms into an L-Shape. A blue and white ray of Specium energy fired, illuminating the darkness. The ray hit Ultraseven, throwing him back and coating his front side in fire.

Ultraman rolled his shoulders as he parted his arms. He chuckled, “You see now, don’t you? I’m more powerful than ever before thanks to Orga.”

Ultraseven rolled onto his back and looked at the approaching thing. “You’re just using my cousin’s strength as your own, monster.” He began to stand, throwing the Eye Slugger at his foe.

Ultraman ducked, allowing the blade to stab into the wall behind him. Ultraman glared over his shoulder before returning his cruel gaze back to Ultraseven. He lowered his arm, gathering energy into a circular shape in the palm of his hand. The pulsating shape began to grow ridges like a rotating saw. He lifted his hand and threw it down. Ultraseven rolled to the side just before impact, causing the Ultra Cutter to vanish in midair just as soon as it cut into the floor. He sat up, extending his hand to draw the Eye Slugger back.

The boomerang-like weapon obeyed its master’s command. It tore itself out of the wall and came down with a hiss, straight through Ultraman’s left arm! The giant howled in rage, using his other hand to cover the wound that now sprayed a disgusting, black fluid. The severed arm landed on the ground, using its fingers to begin crawling away into the darkness. The thing turned its back on Ultraseven as the wound began to seal. The red giant crossed his own arms into a T-Shape, firing his own version of a signature Ultra attack: the Wide Shot.

The powerful beam tore through Ultraman’s back, sending a wash of black fluid and red and silver flesh across the area. He was pushed against the wall, sandwiched between the beam and structure for several moments. His mouth began to part, revealing lines of needle-like teeth underneath the plate-like face of the hero it had disguised itself as. At last, the wall began to crumble. Chunks of Matango fell on both combatants as a huge hole formed on the mushroom. Ultraman spilled onto the outside shadow of the bulbous fungus. Ultraseven breathed deeply, ceasing his beam and parting his arms slowly. He stepped forward, eyes adjusting to the massive amounts of light flooding the area from the outside battlefield.

“It’s over, monster.”

Ultraman staggered to all fours, his broken face looking over his shoulder at the advancing warrior. His faceplate continued to shift, giving the crimson giant brief glimpses of the true form of the thing. Its stump of an arm began to pulsate, spreading upward to the shoulder above. The shiny flesh began to take on a brown and gray, earthly hue. All of a sudden, a new hand erupted from its side. It was massive, like a bald gorilla’s with three long, spindly fingers tipped with silver claws. The shoulder grew in size almost reaching Ultraman’s forehead and a round opening appeared on, glowing a strange yellow in color.

Ultraman began climbing to his feet, now balancing himself with his gigantic arm on the ground in a knuckle walking fashion.

On the bridge of the Gotengo, the group of resistance watched in awe as Ultraman mutated. “That must be our target.” Ozaki declared, looking up at both X and Captain Gordon.

The older man nodded in approval. “Get us back into this fight, Ozaki.”

Ozaki turned back around, trying to fight for control but the massive amount of Gyaos and Kamacuras outside were still swarming the ship and holding her down. “I can’t, sir. We can’t recover like this.”

X sighed, looking up at the ceiling of the deck. “Any moment would be nice…”

Overhead, the skies began to churn. Dark clouds flashed with light as massive objects began to break through the atmosphere. Bolts of lightning fell like rain, followed by bell-like, rolling hums. The monsters all looked up, eyes fixated on the new arrivals. The first appeared a gigantic orb of golden metal. Then more came alongside it. Then more shapes of various sizesdescended from the heavens, all more triangular in shape. The Kamacuras and Gyaos swarms assaulting the Gotengo hissed. Their wings spread as far as they could in preparation to meet the reinforcements head-on.

Before they could close the gap, countless smaller ships fell from the bellies of the round ships. The Xilien fleet had arrived!

Captain Gordon looked down at X, “You didn’t tell us they were coming?”

The young leader merely shrugged, “I thought you’d like surprises, Captain.”

Gordon chucked and grinned, “Good work.” He then looked back down at Ozaki, “Okay, now get us back up!”

Lasers began to fire at the multitude of Gyaos and Kamacuras. The skies began to bleed fire and limbs as the alien firepower cut through the killers and spread outward. The warships began to attack the hybrid Gigan was battling, causing it to scurry away as fireballs erupted all around it. Damaged and his armor sizzling, Gigan stood tall, watching as the reinforcements began to rip into any and all kaiju that weren’t on their side.

“About damn time.” Koji sighed in relief as a tidal wave of alien ships flew over Moguera, “Looks like this war will finally be coming to an end.”

Ultraseven pointed to the distance, causing Ultraman to turn and look. His eyes shifted in their sockets, growing into cat-like irises. He then looked back at the red giant, “You think any of this matters?”

“You’ve lost, Orga.” Ultraseven declared, crossing his arms. “There’s no victory for you anymore.”

The thing grinded its teeth together and shook its head. “No…” It stated coldly, its voice becoming deeper, “You… that robot and Gigan. The Xilien fleet and Gotengo? What are you but a few against the many.” It stepped back, lifting both of its arms. “What are you against the face of an army? Versus everybody!?”

The entire battlefield began to rumble. Tremendous fissures ripped open across the ground, spitting dust, smoke, and fire. Kaiju began to crawl forth from the depths, the very roots, of the Matango that had expanded across Osaka. All the behemoths had been gripped by the Matango/Orga plague. Monsters leaped into the sky, obliterating dozens of Xilien warships in a matter of seconds. Megaguirus and Rodan used their powerful sonic bombs to rip through the legions of spaceships and annihilate two of the many golden orbs that came with. Titanosaurus and Bemular rushed after Gigan, taking the cyborg by surprise as the squid-like Gezora emerged, using its lengthy tentacles to ensnare the assassin cyborg. From the ground, the overtaken Megalon made its first appearance to the heroes since becoming one with the plague. The Seatopian God was now a pawn to the menace and its body now coated in mushrooms. It came down with rotating drills, clobbering and cracking Gigan’s visor eye.

Gorosaurus and Varan came at Moguera from each side. Then came Gomora and Red King from the front and back. All four dog piled the mighty machine, pushing it down onto the ground in a heap of limbs.

No sooner than the Gotengo got back into the air, the monster Zilla leaped on her back. The battleship began to spin as the reptile began to slashing and biting at her hull with mushroom-covered jaws. Masers began to fire from ports on its side, but the beams merely burned into the Matangos covering it.

Ultraman chuckled, “No matter what happens, my brother…” The thing’s mouth turned into a sick grin at the word that it knew would rattle Ultraseven, “… Orga has more…”

Ultraseven clenched his fists, “You’re so easy to predict, monster.”

Ultraman snarled and rushed his heroic opponent. Ultraseven jumped over the thing, driving his right foot into the back of its head. The creature hissed, swinging around with its oversized arm like a club. It clipped Ultraseven’s leg, causing him to come down at a weird angle, making him collapse to a knee. Ultraman turned around, his opposite arm summoning forth a serrated energy disk. The red and silver giant threw the weapon at Seven. The hero ducked his head, barely dodging the hit that could have decapitated him. Growing in frustration, the giant spread his arms and allowed its mouth to spread across its faceplate. It opened wide, unleashing a bellowing roar. Seeing his chance, Ultraseven brought both hands to his beam lamp once more. The Emerium Ray fired at near point blank range, carving a hideous wound across Ultraman’s torso. The giant stumbled back, its trumpeting roar becoming higher pitched in sound. An explosion of dark fluid erupted from the impact and its tooth-lined maw.

However, as the beam ceased, the wounds already began to close shut. The glow in its shoulder increased in brightness and a strange sound came from it. The ground around its feet buckled and cratered as tremendous force was shot forth suddenly. It took Seven by surprise, hitting the hero with the space monster’s traditional shoulder cannon. The hero was carried back before landing hard on his back, the concussion beam then pushing the warrior across the landscape.

Orga’s beam began to lessen and the thing stood straight. Its Ultra disguise was starting to lessen the longer the battle lasted. It snorted as pieces of Ultraman’s face fell from it like a broken, porcelain mask…

Ultraseven groaned. He rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself to a stance. He shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs after such a powerful impact. However, suddenly, powerful arms wrapped around his midsection. Ultraseven was attacked by a lone, Matango-infested Gaira. The Gargantua cackled, squeezing the hero as tightly as it could as the half-Ultraman approached slowly, drool falling from its muzzle in thick sheets. “I’m going to devour you, Seven!” The creature called out in Shin Hayata’s voice, “Reunite you with your cousin and brother in arms!”

Ultraseven began to struggle, but his power was starting to deplete. His beam lamp began to flash red, warning him of his low power…

Despite the multitude of monsters attacking everywhere and Zilla clinging on her side, the Gotengo flew in. Beams fired from its port sides and drill, targeting the approaching Orga. The thing snarled in rage, looking over its shoulder as its back was pummeled with masers. “You insignificant worms!”

Ultraseven took the opportunity and lifted his leg, delivering a powerful kick to Gaira’s groin. The Gargantua howled and stumbled away. Spinning around while bringing his freed arm to his Eye Slugger, Seven lashed out in a swift movement, cutting a gash across Gaira’s stomach. Its belly spilt open, spewing a steaming load of internal organs, blood, and mushrooms across the battlefield.

“Ram that thing with Zilla!” Captain Gordon barked from his command chair.

The Gotengo’s engines kicked their utmost strongest. The warship approached the enemy with masers firing, but turned a sudden ninety degrees at the last second. Zilla was used as a weapon, smashing the reptile at Mach speeds across Orga’s Ultra body. The lizard bellowed furiously as it was catapulted off and sent flying along with its master. The two landed in a heap. Orga shook its head, snarling in rage and using its enlarged hand to grip the squirming Zilla. “I could use you now!” Its jaws parted wide and sank onto the side of the kaiju, absorbing it at a molecular level. Its jaws developed membranes, drawing the creature into its body even faster as it stood up, eventually sucking its dangling tail down like a big spaghetti noodle.

Orga’s legs began to shift, becoming more digitigrade. Spines erupted from its back, glowing a strange green in color. Its head extended, developing a prominent, boxy snout and elongated chin. Before Ultraseven could react, its maw opened wide and a beam of atomic energy shot. The beam hit the hero, blasting him square in the chest and knocking him down. The creature then spun around, a lengthy tail erupting from its rear and slapping the passing battleship like a cattle whip.

As the Gotengo rocked in midair, Orga’s Ultra arm fell to its side and another Ultra Cutter Disc was summoned in the palm of its hand. “I am tired of these games!”

The Gotengo shot upward, but it was no use. The Ultra Cutter fired from its hand and followed it up, the intense energy cutting through its Earthly metal hull in but a few seconds. A tremendous explosion followed, nearly blowing the vessel in two. Its engines died instantly, causing it to drop like a brick. A long trail of smoke followed it to the ground before it made impact, landing just a few meters outside of the massive mushroom’s shadow. A thick cloud of dust and debris spread outward as the Gotengo rested, its frame busted and bent. There was no way she could attain flight again.

Inside the bridge, the group of resistance fighters collected themselves. “Damage!?” Captain Gordon shouted over the chaos.

“We’re dead in the water. Extensive hull damage, all engines offline!”

The Captain grinded his teeth, “God damn it!” He looked down at Ozaki, “Armaments!?”

“We can still fire!”

“Good! Then do it!”

As blood from a fresh wound rolled down his forehead, Ozaki activated what remained of the Gotengo’s many maser turrets and drill cannon. The approaching Orga waded through the beams with little care, allowing the attacks to splinter against its semi-humanoid form. Its mouth began to open wide, a large membrane extending from the corners. “Time to join us…”

The creature began to lean down, fingers grasping at the battleship eagerly. Suddenly, its body went limp. A tremendous gush of black fluid fell from its body as a crimson blur moved through it. It was Ultraseven! The Ultra Warrior charged in from the rear, his Eye Slugger cutting straight through its neck in one quick movement. He continued forward, jumping over the fallen Gotengo as Orga fell to its knees. The half Zilla and half Ultra head rolled off of its shoulders, a gurgle escaping its gapping maw in the process.

The hero collapsed to a knee as the body of the monstrosity began to disintegrate into black dust. “He did it!” X and Ozaki proclaimed at the same time.

Captain Gordon’s worried face smiled softly, “Thank God…”

Ultraseven’s chest heaved. He looked over his shoulder as the body of the menace began to turn into dust, but something was wrong. While its body fell away, the rest of the battlefield remained the same. The others were still being swarmed from all angles by all sorts of kaiju mutations. The hero groaned, placing a hand on the ground before climbing back to his feet. He shook his head, “This isn’t over yet…”

An all too familiar noise to the heroes suddenly echoed across every square mile of the war. It was a loud, trumpeting noise. A noise that everyone that had ever been to Earth knew of…

“Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeoooooooooooooooooooonnnnnnnk!”

At the noise, the tons of kaiju began to pull away from their targets. Upon hearing it, the crew of the Moguera got excited. “No way! He’s here! He survived!?” Sato shouted in glee.

But he was more wrong that he could possibly imagine. Godzilla appeared on the outskirts of the battlefield, his colossal body coated in an infernal glow. The monster’s non-glowing scales were as dark as ash and eyes burned red as fire. Its entire form radiated intense energy. Both Gigan and Moguera looked at it the King of the Monsters in awe. However, from its mouth, a beam of spiraling radiation launched. It hit both Gigan and Moguera, engulfing both fighters in a sea of hellfire. Chunks of their armor flew in every direction as the Burning Godzilla unleashed his destructive powers upon them in one quick shot.

Ozaki covered his mouth with a hand while X stood stunned. “I should have saw this coming…” Gordon looked down at the alien, puzzled. “The original Orga was designed to take the DNA of Godzilla. Its mission would have remained the same… THAT is your target!”

“We’ve been played…” Ozaki muttered.

Gigan tried flying away from the sea of fire, but Godzilla’s Spiral Beam followed it. The beam collided with the cyborg from the side, sending it down with a trail of fire following it. Inside Moguera, every warning sounded. Its left arm was blown off at the elbow as the pilots activated its treads. The machine tried getting out of there as fast as the robot could move. Another beam caught it from the side, nearly toppling it as a massive explosion spread from its body…

As the wall of fire towered for several hundred meters over the battlefield, Ultraseven began to stagger forward. He held his Eye Slugger tightly in hand, but his energy was on the brink. His body was weakening more and more with every passing second. He managed but three steps before collapsing to his knees, his green timer now flashing red at an alarming rate.

“I’m afraid he’s nearly depleted.” X declared sorrowfully, looking over his shoulder at both Ozaki and Captain Gordon.

Gordon shook his head, “We’ve come too far to let go now.”

X’s gaze fell upon Ozaki, and then back to Gordon. “Do you remember the finale of the 2004 war?”

Gordon’s brow raised and his saddened face showed another sign of hope…

Moguera staggered as chunks as big as boulders were blown from its hull with every shot of Godzilla’s almighty spiral ray. The machine was now without an arm and if it continued, it’d be left without anything to stand. The three men inside fought against the violent rocking, trying their best to retaliate. Lasers and plasma blasts fired back through the hell, but the attacks were like firecrackers against the awesome power of the King of the Monsters.

Suddenly Gordon’s voice came over the comm., “I know it’s hard, but try and keep him busy over there. That Godzilla is the Orga we’ve been after.”

Another fierce blast coated Moguera in a blanket of fire, “Oh sure, easy for you to say!” Sato shouted back.

Koji gritted his teeth, “Sir, Moguera may be durable, but this is stretching it!”

“Just a minute or so. Just keep it up, anyway you can!”

From behind the other two, Yuki shouted. “YOU HEARD THE MAN!”

Moguera rushed out of the plumes of fire with its treads. Its remaining arm popped open, revealing and firing a Spiral Grenade Missile. The sudden attack took Godzilla off guard, blasting open the beast’s muscular, glowing chest. The titan stumbled back, brushing its wound with its clawed hand and growling. Already, the ugly crater was starting to close up. The tyrant kaiju glared and its lips curled, revealing steaming fangs… It fired again…

Ozaki sat straight in his seat, straps restraining him as he pulled his manual targeting helmet over his eyes. Behind him, X watched intently. “I always wondered how you pulled this off.”

“Well, he didn’t.” Gordon declared, “But his father did.”

Ozaki squeezed the control sticks as beads of sweat began to roll from his forehead. His black hair began to sizzle, generating faint wisps of energy between each strand. His skin began to glow, radiating with a power only a few Earthlings had developed at this point of mankind’s evolution. “Ozaki’s a mutant.” Gordon continued to explain as the drill of the Gotengo slowly began to rotate, “He’s capable of summoning vast amounts of internal energy and then releasing it.”

“So that’s how you supercharged Godzilla all those years ago…”

Gordon nodded, “And how we’re going to recharge Ultraseven now…”

The ship’s remaining power was rapidly transferred to its drill as Ozaki funneled his natural born power from his body and into the battleship. The flickering lights began to grow brighter as, for just a few moments, he restored power. The drill began to glow like the sun as Ozaki’s power gathered at the tip. On his knees, Ultraseven’s head weakly looked over his shoulder.

The drill began to rotate and a beam of yellow light fired. It struck Ultraseven, snaking its way into his beam lamp. The hero’s arms flew out to his sides as his head whipped back around. A tremendous power began to fill every ounce of his being, refreshing and recharging his stamina and energy. The warrior’s dull eyes began to glow brighter and his beam lamp became neon green. Ozaki’s power drained him quickly. The young man’s body fell from his seat, collapsing on the floor in unconsciousness. The last of his summoned energy drifted into Seven’s beam lamp. The hero stood tall, as if it was his first day on the job again. Decades worth of wear and tear on his body was seemingly vanished for this moment. He looked down at his hands and over his body. The scorch marks and other wounds were gone. His red form looked brand new. His hands then clenched and eyes shot forward, glaring at the colossal mushroom clouds spreading with every shot of Godzilla’s ray…

Gigan shrieked as he tried to escape, but the bombardment was too intense. As soon as his tail booster kicked to life, another beam would send him crashing down. The vile thing was simply trying to blast its opponents into oblivion.

“ENOUGH!”

Ultraseven’s booming voice caused Godzilla’s snout to lock shut. His glowing eyes looked up just in time to see the warrior’s foot come down with a huge impact. The blow caused the saurian to fall to the side with a growl. Ultraseven landed, quickly removing his Eye Slugger once more. The king kaiju was quick to rise, maw opening to unleash his blast, but Ultraseven jumped over it. He threw the Eye Slugger, the curved blade cutting through the base of the spiral ray and into the midsection of Godzilla’s chest, stabbing into the rough hide of the beast.

Gigan shook his head and looked over at Moguera. Both of them were in horrible shape after enduring the titanic assault. Gigan’s vision was blurred from his wounded eye. His blue armor was now black, parts of it literally melted. Sparks erupted from its abdomen saw and its left chainsaw arm was near useless with the chains hanging loose. Moguera was even worse, left without its right arm entirely. Still, they could fight. And if they could fight, they would continue.

Godzilla’s arm came up, gripping the Eye Slugger in its chest and yanking the weapon out with a snarl. The blade dragged a mixture of steaming fluid with it as the gapping wound closed up. No sooner than the monster removed it, the Eye Slugger flew from his hands and back into Ultraseven’s.

“We owe you one!” Koji shouted from inside Moguera as the machine sped in, pointing its remaining arm at the massive kaiju. Before Godzilla could react, a Spiral Grenade Missile fired point blank into its forehead.

Godzilla’s skull was cratered, teeth and bone flying in every direction as a spiraling ball of smoke and fire expanded where its head was on the ground. However, another spiral beam erupted from the chaos. It hit Moguera square in the chest, picking the monolith up off the ground and catapulting him high.

“Boosters!” Yuki commanded as the machine was carried higher from the sheer impact that left a huge dent in its chest region.

Moguera’s built-in boosters in its feet and tail came online, allowing Moguera to pick up speed in the air before it fell. It circled overhead, a trail of fire following from the impact on its chest.

Godzilla rolled onto his chest and stomach and pushed himself up. However, Ultraseven jumped onto his back. He began slashing and stabbing wildly with his Eye Slugger, doing his best to cut off its head. The saurian bellowed, thrashing its lengthy tail in every direction. At the same time, Gigan’s Cluster Light Ray fired from the side, hitting its regenerating head, trying its best to help Ultraseven decapitate the monster…

As pieces of its flesh fell, Godzilla’s eyes closed and his glowing spines flashed. A blast of internal energy shot from between his tooth-lined muzzle. Ultraseven could feel the massive energy gathering, but it was too late. The Nuclear Pulse cratered the ground underneath the downed menace. The pulse shot Ultraseven off as radiation was expelled from every inch of Godzilla’s body. Gigan stumbled back with a shriek and Moguera knocked out of the air. Seven landed a distance away, shaking his head. However, it gave Godzilla the opportunity it wanted. The monster king climbed back to his feet, stomping and thrashing while his tail pulverized the ground.

The monster king glared, his lips curling and ivory teeth grinding. The beast was growing tired of the nuisance posed by this trio. Ultraseven was quick to jump back to his feet to a defensive stance, ready to dodge as soon as Godzilla unloaded his Spiral Atomic Ray once more. But it didn’t happen. Instead, the reptilian abomination looked around the battlefield, his cruel eyes looking at the dozens of kaiju that Orga… it… had summoned.

Gigan and Moguera appeared on either side of the crimson warrior. Ultraseven looked at Gigan, and then at the man-made robot. So different the three of them that they were literally worlds apart… but this day would now go down in the history books of the entire universe. Three races united against a common enemy. Never before and, hopefully, never again…

The legions of kaiju began their sounds. Destoroyah and Megalon, both of them still covered in masses of Matango, approached Godzilla from his sides. Following behind and taking a stance behind their leader, the Anguirus-Baragon-Manda chimera. Then several Gaira, Gomora… One after another, the kaiju that had surrounded the battlefield began to line up on either side of Godzilla.

The deranged but familiar voice of Dr. Shiragami began to come from Godzilla’s body. “You are horribly outmatched.”

No response in words came from the three resistance fighters. Instead, Gigan lifted his one functional arm, causing the saws to sound. Moguera’s nose-mounted drill began to rotate and Ultraseven gripped his Eye Slugger tightly.

“Why do you fight?” The voice from within the saurian continued to try and reason, “It is futile. You will see this in the end. Use your reason.”

Behind Godzilla, the multitude of kaiju began to shift. The closest ones to its body began to reach out, touching Godzilla’s sides, tail, and spines. Upon touch, their flesh began to meld and pulsate. Destoroyah and Megalon’s bodies were drawn into the king kaiju’s frame. The Oxygen Destroyer spawn’s horn and frill began to grow from Godzilla’s skull while its wings and tusks began to bubble out of its body. Godzilla’s arms began to become larger and thick, becoming metallic and rigid. A Kamacuras flew in from the air, followed by a Gyaos. They landed on Godzilla’s back, becoming a mass of pulsating flesh that settled onto the behemoth’s body. From between Destoroyah’s wings, Gyaos’ spread. Between the original set of arms, Kamacuras’ claws erupted from its flesh.

The three warriors looked at one another for a second, not sure what to do or expect. However, Ultraseven merely nodded. This was it, what they were waiting for. Orga was assembling itself… gathering all of its prime DNA into one super being…

The three kaiju chimera snarled viciously and leaped onto Orga’s chest, clinging to its shifting body and settling in. Manda’s lengthy body moved around, poking out of its left side between its arm and leg. Anguirus’ carapace of armor began to grow over Godzilla’s arms like padding. Baragon’s horn jettisoned out of Godzilla’s nostrils while Anguirus’ iconic tusks grew from Godzilla’s prominent fangs and its tongue became forked like that of Manda’s.

“Hold on…” Ultraseven warned and extended an arm as Gigan began to take a step closer, “Let it finish…”

“Cousin…” Shin Hayata’s voice came from the abomination as Ultraman’s red and silver colors began to appear over its patchwork of scales and flesh. The thing’s eyes enlarged, becoming more oval-like in shape and glowing and as Destoroyah’s chest blossomed, Ultraman’s color timer emerged from its center.

Rodan cackled and flew in from the side, allowing itself to become one with the genetic nightmare. Its chest armor began to surround Destroyah’s chest piece.

What seemed like hours was just a minute or so as Orga summoned its vast army back into its body. With every creature it’s assimilated, its size increased. Now it was truly gigantic, bigger than anything the heroes ever imagined. The noises coming from every inch of its colossal body were an amalgam of kaiju roars. The very ground shuddered as it moved, dragging several tails behind its monstrous form.

Ultraseven tilted his head, “Now.”

Gigan rushed in. Brilliant beams of powered fired from everywhere across the hideous thing’s body. Gigan dodged, spinning and ducking as the ground was littered with fireworks. Ultraseven jumped into the air, flying at the creature. Moguera remained steady, its eye, chest maser, and Auto-Lasers firing back, but the blows were tiny across its massive body. Gigan spun again, firing his Cluster Light Ray point blank and coating its left arm with explosions. However, the enlarged Manda lashed out from its side. It lunged, grabbing Gigan’s foot and dragging the cyborg down with a terrible impact. The serpent’s maw then spread wide, a crimson glow building in its gullet. Its body began to steam as Orga readied Godzilla’s Atomic Spiral Ray.

Ultraseven came down just in time, stomping its serpentine jaws shut. By that time, the remaining Xilien Forces began to gather themselves overhead. The multitude of spaceships came down like angry gnats on the thing, pelting it with lasers. The monster snarled, glowing eyes narrowing. Suddenly, Destoroyah’s horn extended tenfold. It whipped the Oxygen Destroyer power outward, annihilating several warships in one sweep. It then dragged the attack downward, targeting Ultraseven. The hero rolled to the side as the laser horn split the ground and scarred the Earth.

Orga’s Megalon arm lifted lazily and pointed at the hero as he gained distance. It shifted in place before crevices appeared across its metallic structure. It erupted like a three-pedaled flower. Inside of it, three Gyaos heads hissed and bit the air. Three Sonic Beams then fired, piercing Ultraseven’s back. The hero fell to his knees as the cutting beams burned through his crimson body.

The opened hand suddenly erupted into a thunderous ball of fire. Moguera had fired a Spiral Grenade Missile right into the three snapping jaws of the arm. Orga snorted, its head turning to face the machine. Its other hand lifted and split wide open. From within, a dozen of Biollante’s tendrils lashed out with minds of their own, some with spear tips and others with serrated tooth-lined jaws. Moguera’s plasma eye beams fired in rapid succession, obliterating some of the vines but two spears found their marks, stabbing into the robot’s weakened chest armor. The automaton stumbled back, sparks and smoke erupting from its wounds. Its upper body leaned forward, drilling through the two tentacles and splattering green fluid across its frame.

As the machine violently rocked free of the tendrils, Koji shouted inside the cockpit, “Going to have to do better than that!”

Its treads kicked to life, carrying the robot forward with its drill spinning. The hand of the abomination snapped shut and began to pulsate. It sucked itself back into the monster’s shoulder while arachnid legs erupted from its sides. The face of Kumonga appeared where its arm used to be. Its mandibles parted, spitting webs to slow its advance. The sticky material clung to the robot’s feet and ground, trapping it like a fly.

Gigan swiped outward with his saw, dragging it across the thing’s midsection. Orga snorted, turning its gaze to the cyborg. Its face remained emotionless as the enlarged Manda merely slapped him away, the deep cut closing up before a single drop of blood could be spilled. Ultraseven’s Wide Shot tore through its side, incinerating layers of kaiju flesh as a bright light filled the area. Finally, Orga released a high-pitched cry of pain for but a brief second. Godzilla’s jaws opened wide, splitting at the jaw as a Biollante tendril erupted from its throat. The snapping jaws tipping the vine clamped around Ultraseven’s face, driving him to his knees while grabbing at the fleshy thing. Steam began to sizzle as acid sap began to burn away the hero’s face. Suddenly, the vine went stiff. A green line burned through the tendril, splitting it in two. The Emerium Beam tore through the tendril and then carved into Orga’s throat, causing bits of ash to fall to the ground.

The thing stepped back on wobbly legs as three tails came around its sides. One was tipped with Gomora’s head, another with Bemular’s, and the last with Rodan’s. The three jaws called out before firing their trademark projectiles. Ultraseven didn’t have time to recover as the acid still burned at his eyes. The three beams smashed into him full-force, sending him skidding across the landscape.

“This is so hopeless!” Dr. Shiragami and Shin Hayata declared from within the ugly, demented thing. “It’s pointless!”

Ultraseven groaned as the beams ceased and his body came to a stop. He shook his head, quickly sitting up. He could tell his energy was starting to deplete once more.

Moguera’s face looked down at the webs on its feet. Its eye beams fired once more, burning through the sticky substance, but the noise had caught Orga’s attention. Its transforming head, now becoming more like that of a traditional Orga, glared at it. The creature’s teeth clanged together as Moguera approached once more, firing its chest beam and plasma beams. The powerful beams tore through the behemoth’s midsection, making its Manda neck and jaws shoot outward. Its jaws spread wide, clamping around the throat of the robot. Moguera’s body spun around, coiling the black serpent around it willingly before leaning down, driving its nose drill into its midsection. The serpent released its catch and cried out as crimson ooze sprayed outward. A downpour of blood began to flow from its snapping jaws as Moguera’s drill cut through black scales, then muscle, and finally bone.

The Manda head cried its last before falling in half, its deafening screams muffling into non-existence as its body turned to dust.

Koji noticed this instantly. “Its severed pieces aren’t taking lives of their own!”

“We must be taxing its abilities to the limits.” Yuki declared as the abomination’s thunderous cries of rage echoed for miles.

Suddenly, Moguera was thrown back as Orga’s body turned and a dozen arms of various size and shape erupted from where Kumonga’s face once was. The multitude of limbs hit like a meteor shower, one after another. The robot stumbled away, nearly spinning from the sheer power of the multiple hits. Before it could recover, the arms pulled back inside of Orga’s shoulder and its natural shoulder cannon appeared. A faint glow was followed by a thunderous concussion beam, cratering and smoldering the Earth underneath it. The blast lifted Moguera off its feet, making showers of sparks rise from its limbs. It was carried back, flipping head over heels before being slammed against the wall of the massive Matango.

The machine fell into a heap, unmoving.

Back at the Gotengo, Ozaki was rushed to the infirmly as Gordon and X watched the battle unfold. “Is there nothing we can do?” The alien stated worryingly.

Gordon merely shook his head, “We’re completely drained. I’m afraid it’s up to them…”

Ultraseven watched as Moguera fell from the wall. He saw the thing had its back toward him. He began to stand, clenching his Eye Slugger tightly. He rushed in, jumping into the air. Mere seconds before he could land a solid blow, Orga’s body leaned forward. From its back, the legs and face of Gorosaurus emerged from its bulbous flesh. He fell directly into the dinosaur’s kangaroo kick. Ultraseven shouted in pain as the kick sent him hurtling back, dropping the Eye Slugger to the ground.

His beam lamp began to flash red.

The saurian’s face and legs retracted back into Orga’s massive body as a wicked laughter came from it and its kingdom of Matango. Gigan’s unmistakable shriek sounded. The cyborg recovered and flew in from above, his cutting disks flying in front of him. The circular blades came down faster than lightning, carving up Orga’s vile flesh. However, again, the ugly wounds merely closed up and the flesh that fell turned to ash. The monster’s yellow eyes looked up and mouth opened wide. Godzilla’s spiral atomic ray erupted from its muzzle. Gigan flew to the side, evading the beam while firing back with his own, targeting the thing’s throat. Orga groaned, shaking its head and flailing his enlarged hand while its other, empty shoulder thrust up. The flesh exploded into a mass of vines and vegetation, then teeth and tusks. Pale eyes formed, finalizing the head of Biollante in mere seconds.

The crocodilian mouth called out as green energy gathered from across Orga’s body and into the depths of its tooth-lined jaws. Gigan fired again, targeting the new head. A blanket of explosions spread across its triangular skull, but through the smoke and fire, a geyser of green, sizzling acid.

Gigan shrieked as the acid hit him head-on. The cyborg dropped, a thick trail of steam following. The acid was rapidly eating away his already damaged armor. The Xilien weapon thrashed across the ground, his body contorting and rolling about as he tried to rid himself of the acid.

Orga smirked as Biollante’s head folded in on itself and retracted back into its shoulder. At the same time, another large, three fingered arm dangled down, claws scraping the rugged dirt underneath…

Ultraseven crawled to his knees and extended his arm, summoning the Eye Slugger back to his open hand. “Why don’t you face me fairly… cousin!?”

Orga snorted, turning its bulbous head to look over its shoulder. Its titanic form slowly turned, kicking up a storm of dirt and debris as its cruel eyes looked over the crimson giant. “You’re running low on energy… while I have full.” Orga declared with Shin Hayata’s voice coming from its inside. It lifted a hand, touching the blue gem in the center of its chest.

Ultraseven stood his ground as the towering mountain of flesh and limbs slowly made its advance.

Orga loomed over the hero by several hundred meters, its unblinking gaze matching Ultraseven as the hero looked up at it. His head tilted, “Now we end this.”

Orga’s mouth split wide open, pink membranes extending. Its humongous arms reached out, but Ultraseven jumped away. The warrior’s Emerium Beam fired again, carving a deep wound across Orga’s throat…

Gigan rolled onto his side, his armor still steaming and almost every inch of its form looking melted with thick sheets of metal rolling from its body. Its visor eye was dimmed, but it could still see Ultraseven taking on the living nightmare one-on-one. He shook his spiked head and began to stand weakly. More armor fell from his form, revealing organic, scarred flesh underneath. Dark green skin appeared in patches where armor fell from its arms and legs. Its chest, overlapping golden scales felt the air for the first time in decades. The teeth of its abdominal saw were melted into studs, as were the teeth of its hand-mounted chainsaws. Gigan looked at them. They could no longer cut, but he was still armed with massive, thick metal objects. The cybernetic kaiju limped forward, mouth broken and hanging open…

Inside Moguera, the three men began to recover. The cockpit was filling with smoke as alarms and sirens rang loudly. The noise first brought Koji back. He shook his head and weakly opened his eyes, realizing what was happening. “Oh my God…” He stuttered, then shouting for the other two to wake up.

Sato woke in a daze, a trickle of blood flowing from his nostrils. “What’s… What’s going on?”

Koji typed commands like mad into the computer, “The reactor’s been breached!”

Sato’s eyes opened wide, “WHAT!?”

Rubbing his head, Yuki looked around. “We need to get out of here.”

Koji got in contact with Captain Gordon onboard the Gotengo. His orders were to evacuate as well. The three began to unbuckle themselves from their seats, but Yuki caught a glimpse of Ultraseven battling the enemy. He stopped short of fully standing up, catching the other two off guard.

“What are you doing?” Sato shouted as the radiation levels continued to rise.

Yuki looked back from the screen and to his two longtime friends. “Even if we escape, so what?”

Koji waved him to follow, “We got our orders to evacuate.”

Yuki shook his head, “Orders don’t mean much to me.” He declared, sitting back down and strapping himself back into the seat. “I’m not leaving this. You two leave, if this thing is going to blow, I’m taking that down with me!”

“You can’t!” Sato cried, taking a step but being blocked by Koji’s arm.

“Come on.” The commander of Moguera demanded, pulling Sato by his arm through the exit doors of the cockpit of the machine.

From the back of Moguera, a small escape pod launched into the air. Just in time, for the machine’s remaining boosters came online. The robot began to stand, sparks and fire erupting from countless breaks in its burnt armor. Yuki gritted his teeth and smeared blood that began to roll down the side of his face with his gloved hand. “You want this planet. You want everything. Then you will take the self-destruction of this machine as well. Time to die!”

Gigan swung out with his ruined saws, bludgeoning the back of Orga as it tried swiping Ultraseven. The thing’s arms dropped to its sides and head turned around on its shoulders. Its jaws opened wide, making Megalon’s star-tipped horn jettison out of its mouth like a tongue. The horn fired a quick bolt of lightning upon the cyborg. Gigan fell, more of his armor falling from his frame to reveal the organics underneath. The beast’s body spun to match the direction its head was facing. Sensing organics, the abomination reached out. Its jaws began to break open, its pink membrane expanding once more. Its three fingers wrapped around Gigan tightly, squeezing.

Gigan looked up, his eye spotting the image of Megalon within the darkness of Orga’s gullet. The beetle God of Seatopia was looking directly up at the cyborg and its drill waved the cyborg to join.

Ultraseven flew in, “NO!” He shouted, but Orga’s other arm came out of no where. Its three fingers grabbed him as well, holding the hero like a child would a toy.

From within the thing, Shin Hayata spoke once again. “You’ll get your turn.”

Orga held the heroes in its grasp. Gigan stopped struggling as Orga’s jaws continued to unhinge. More creatures appeared from within, all waving the space monster to join them.

Ultraseven struggled as the grip tightened around his body. He couldn’t move. He was helpless as Gigan was pulled into Orga’s gapping mouth…

Something caught Orga’s attention. Its yellow eyes opened wide as a silver blur sped toward it. Moguera flew. Streams of smoke and fire followed it. Sparks erupted from it. But it was airborne. Inside, Yuki snarled. “You WILL die!”

Moguera, the titanic machine, flew directly into the towering abomination’s gapping mouth! Orga’s monstrous jaws snapped shut like a flytrap. For a brief moment, its grip on Ultraseven and Gigan loosened. The resistance fighters fell, landing on their backs as Orga stumbled back, a massive lump in its throat vanishing into its belly. The beast coughed and gagged, clawing at its own neck as Moguera’s drill activated, burrowing deeper inside of it.

It was dark inside the thing. But Yuki could see within the cockpit, mainly thanks to the constant warning lights. The reactor was getting worse, but it wasn’t close enough to meltdown yet. He switched on the communications a final time. “Captain Gordon, it was an honor to serve under your command.” A lump appeared on his throat as he fought back tears, “Koji and Sota, behave. You’re the finest pilots I’ve ever had deal with. Please, when you see Gondo again…”

A great crushing force interrupted the feed. The innards of Orga were crushing it like a tin can. Yuki sighed, shaking his head. “And goodbye to you too.”

Moguera’s arm made a creaking noise as it struggled to rise. If it’d been able to, the cone would have popped open, but the pressure was too great. Instead, it remained closed even as Yuki armed the Spiral Grenade Missile within it, and the few remaining ones housed up its arm and into its chest. He gave one last look at the screen, “Here goes nothing…”

He pressed the fire button.

Moguera’s arm exploded as the Spiral Grenade Missile detonated within it. A chain reaction of blasts traveled up across its awesome body as its entire arsenal detonated. One after another, the warheads sent shockwaves of tremendous power through the abomination’s body. Orga’s form began to expand like a huge balloon, trying to contain the massive explosions caused by the Spiral Grenade Missiles.

But that wasn’t the last.

The final missile, located mere meters away from Moguera’s damaged nuclear reactor, blew…

A tremendous flash of light tore through the monstrosity. The ground around it instantly steamed as the bright orb grew in size, as if a second sun was being born on Earth. Orga’s many limbs spread wide and a ghastly howl erupted from its mouth as its hulking form was swallowed up by the blast. Ultraseven and Gigan rolled over onto their backs as a wave of hellfire lifted up and came crashing back down, hammering the environment. The Gotengo was swallowed up by the flames, her hull rupturing in numerous sections and pieces of its armor vanishing into the firestorm. Shockwave after shockwave smashed against the massive wall of the city-sized Matango mushroom, crumbling the massive structure. Finally, a gigantic cloud of dust, smoke, and fire lifted into the heavens to signal the end of the great war…

The nuclear blast left an ugly scorch across the face of the planet…

---

Two weeks later, there was no trace left of the genetic nightmare that was Orga. From across the cosmos, humanity found aid. The Xiliens came to help rescue efforts, and with them came other unexpected help. Additionally, more Ultra Warriors arrived after a distress call was sent out by Ultraseven. Both he and Gigan survived, but their wounds were horrible. Seven would need great treatment back on Nebula M78, while all of Gigan’s armor would need to be replaced. Only a few broken shards remained attached to his organics that once lay underneath…

But they survived.

After the dust settled, salvation began. Humanity did suffer. Over a billion lives had been consumed by Orga, explaining its intelligence. It was discovered that it had assimilated Miki Saegusa’s School for Telepaths, granting it a psychic link with all of its spawn and allowing it to control them. The mysteries of the war were unraveled quickly, but the true horror of how much it would take to recover had yet to found.

In what was once Tokyo, search parties looked far and wide for survivors. Two Xiliens and a small team of humans were amongst them. There wasn’t much left, just ash from where the massive mushrooms disintegrated following Orga’s demise. Their search lasted for hours, clearing building after building, leaving footprints in the ash as if it was snow.

One of them heard something.

They entered a small line of structures, discovering a green house buried amongst the wreckage. Once inside, the smell of flowers filled their nostrils. They shined their lights across the green house, finding not a single sign of ash, but lush vegetation.

“Hello?” One of them called out from their gasmasks. “Is there anybody here?”

As their beams of light skimmed the greenhouse, two lone figures were spotted. They stood side-by-side, hand in hand. An older gentlemen and a much younger, brunette girl. The man nodded, keeping to the shadows. “I guess you could say that…”

The other members of the search party looked on, approaching them with medical aid and supplies. “We’re here to help, are you okay?”

The gentlemen nodded as a light moved across his face briefly, revealing a pair of broken glasses taped together. “I’m fine, thank you.” He said gracefully, smiling. “And so is my daughter…”