Chapter 1846

NO. 461: Just rushing to run, that's all—do you really think you're done for?

NO. 461 Just rushing to run, that's all—do you really think you're done for?

GravityBeams/Gravity Beams

The signature breath of King Ghidorah holds a status akin to that of the heat ray to Godzilla. However, unlike Godzilla, whose legendary fiery breath once overshadowed the heat ray in public perception under the name "Atomic Breath," Ghidorah avoided such obscurity due to its recurring role as a villain.

As a recurring antagonist, it doesn't require designing numerous different special-effect techniques. While innovation is still needed, it suffices to retain the essence of the original version and make minor adjustments—perhaps adding a suffix—to create upgraded forms such as a gravity-ray-based 【Destruction·Lightning】 or 【Destruction Imperial Wave】, which can be striking without stealing the spotlight.

There will be no shift in perception regarding its signature skill.

Yet there is a slight awkwardness: limited by filming methods, special effects production, budget, and schedule, nearly every incarnation of Ghidorah has struggled to visually interpret its setting.

Even its signature move, the gravity beam, rarely displays the characteristics implied by the word "gravity." Its visual presentation is often simply a plain golden thunderbolt—more akin to an electrical discharge. Even calling it a gravity manifestation via plasma as a carrier struggles to convince, let alone the supposed effect of "making matter float and disintegrate," which feels utterly nonexistent.

But fortunately...

Despite persistent limitations in visual expression, Ghidorah has still managed, through sheer frequency of appearance, to piece together opportunities to demonstrate its setting's intended functions. The most important reference in this regard is undoubtedly Kaiser Ghidorah from Godzilla: Final Wars.

It was here that the concept of "gravity"—capable of both enhanced impact and drawing in matter—first emerged, marking the first attempt in Ghidorah's imagery to separate "control" and "output" into "gravity beam" and "Kaiser Imperial Wave."

Unfortunately, in subsequent appearances, this attempt was never carried forward and survives only in occasional fan-made works. Yet if viewers at this moment were to notice the satellite TV broadcast from the City of Heavenly Gate being restored, they would likely be moved by the "recovery of cut footage."

And then...

And then perhaps it's time to worry.

Worry about whether that thing will turn around and start causing destruction, and whether one should cheer on that flamboyant, dragon-shaped monster that needs to be firmly controlled.

After all, Ghidorah has appeared in so many incarnations, but it has served as a genuine ally only once. For the vast majority of the time, it is an invasive, evil extraterrestrial species. Some versions even portray it as an evil god—a terrifying monster that exists only on screen, for if it were to appear in reality, only extremists yearning for world destruction and seeking revenge on society would cheer for it.

But the fact is, it is already there.

The surveillance satellite feed is ultra-high-definition and long-range, allowing one to instantly see it snarling more ferociously, more wickedly and eerily than imagined, spewing its beam while dragging along another dragon-like monster—ferocious yet slightly diminutive.

Seeing a scene that seems to yield a notification like 【Territory Conflict Survey Points +250】, only someone who recognizes just one of them could entertain such one-sided concern.

Indeed, although both are monsters, fans of Godzilla who know Ghidorah and fans of Ultraman who know Lugiel (Rainbow Dragon) have a clear perceptual gap. This is because, compared to Ghidorah—often Godzilla's arch-enemy—Lugiel is merely a monster tightly bound to the brothers of Robo Ultraman, appearing only sparingly throughout the Ultraman franchise, its image niche even among niches.

Those who know Lugiel likely know Ghidorah, but those who know Ghidorah may not know Lugiel. After all, Robo Ultraman, placed within the Ultraman series, is considered to have a relatively subtle reception, and newcomers are usually advised to prioritize other entries.

Yet once one can recognize it, the sight of its lower half writhing like a centipede and a serpent inevitably raises doubts: could such a bizarre-looking entity, which should be Ghidorah, be instantly countered?

After all, although Lugiel, like Ghidorah, is limited by filming techniques and falls short of its setting, that setting itself is excessive compared to most versions of Ghidorah: dubbed the "cosmic white blood cell," it wanders the cosmos to preserve cosmic stability before its genetic modification triggers a rampage, capable of effortlessly destroying planets as a cosmic devourer.

This is clearly more imposing than the "Golden King from Venus." Unless reality, like tokusatsu works, turns around and tramples the setting by calling it bluster, how could one demonstrate equal footing?

—Anyone thinking this clearly hasn't noticed why Ghidorah's appearance is so strange.

They haven't noticed what the blood-red crystal on the central dragon's head is; they haven't felt what the dark red spikes on the much thicker, yet blade-tip-sharp, dragon tail behind Ghidorah represent; nor have they noticed that the eye on the right of the gold dragon's head, stained with blood-rose patterns, is like the concentric eyes of a mighty Showa-era robot.

But this is not their fault, for even if these traits were noticed, forming an accurate association would still be difficult.

The demand to precisely seize the truth from countless chaotic and complex radio waves is indeed too stringent, but fortunately, reality does not require them to make an immediate choice.

So they only need to wait.

That waiting does not even require patience.

As long as they do not rush to demand a conclusion right away, reality will give a deeper answer—

At the tenth second of watching the three-headed golden dragon, seemingly on the verge of self-collapse, bind its opponent with a gravity beam, the police insignia projection had already unfurled in space!

Alongside the insignia projection, twelve layers of metamorphic barriers unfolded, instantly causing the viewers' vision to flicker with a momentary haze and distortion, as if the screen were separated by a rippling water surface, but in fact serving as clear evidence that both colossal beasts had been "exiled" into an artificially severed dimension.

But its essence is binding.

Every resident of the City of Heavenly Gate knows well the police's operational style: deploying barriers is always their first move. This is both to protect citizens from further harm and to prevent public facilities from being damaged. Even if an incident truly occurred, the city's road and civil engineering technologies are top-tier, yet avoidance of reprimand or penalty remains unlikely.

Thus, what appears to be an act of exile is actually about sealing off the retreat of the two monsters and creating a battlefield conducive to handling.

In the next moment, countless police space shuttles fired beams to construct roads, directly reaching the dimensional frequency band where the two beasts resided, becoming to the viewers another similarly slightly faded presence.

Then... came formal enforcement.

Without any hesitation, squads of officers disembarked from the space shuttles, handed control to AI, and launched an attack on Lugiel, thereby making everyone aware that Ghidorah was actually a rare ally—yet they also saw that Lugiel, which had just appeared weakened and attempted to escape but was seized and flung by the gravity beam, suddenly released a visibly multicolored laser!

It broke free from the gravity beam that had just offered no resistance, then, with a purple-red spiral laser, carved a diagonal line ending at Ghidorah's position!

GenesisRequiem/Genesis Requiem!

?? Ghidorah tips:

? The only time Ghidorah served as a positive force mentioned in this chapter is in Godzilla: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack / iMosura, KinguGidor: Daikaijskgeki, where this fierce version features Mothra, Baragon, and Ghidorah as the three holy beasts defending the nation, uniting against the vengeful spirits that coalesced into Godzilla. The story design is quite inverted, and in the end, they even attempted to purify Godzilla's inner resentment by having the souls of the three holy beasts possess it.

? Fortunately, Godzilla's heart still remained, indicating the purification failed; otherwise, the author would have to doubt the integrity of this work, since everyone knows what kind of resentment Godzilla's image should carry.

? (End of chapter)