KILL ALL KAIJU

“I’m just saying it seems a bit impractical for a ten foot tall monster don’t you think D?” Mack answered as he tried to calm down a distraught Danika.

“But he was here!” She exclaimed. Rounding on her camera man as she pointed to the middle of the Rest Stop’s tile floor. “Right here!”

It had taken more time than Danika would have liked to get to find the Rest Stop she was looking for but she found it. The only problem was that the entire reason she’d rushed to the rest stop in the first place was very noticeably absent. The Big Guy had clearly been here, the same scuff marks on the tiles were present here as the marks in the SuperMart. The kind that must have been the result of claws digging into the floor. It was just driving Danika up a wall that somehow, a hulking green dinosaur had been able to enter a building with the only entrance being glass doors and still leave without giving any further evidence he had been there.

“He came in here.” Danika started as she began pacing around the small space. “But we know he’s almost too big to get in here. So he must have crawled in right? How else could the Big Guy have gotten in? And why would it even bother trying so hard not to break anything when he could have just busted in and taken what he wanted? He can clearly bust through walls if the hole in the SuperMart is anything to go by.”

“Maybe he feels bad about causing property damage.” Mack said semi-seriously.

“Really Mack?” Danika glared at her partner. “In what world does it make sense that the same creature that threw our news van through a gas station care about property damage?”

Mack shrugged. “No idea.” He readily admitted. “But its not that much of a stretch is it? We’re talking about an honest to God monster that knows how to flip circuit breakers. Now, I’m just the camera guy but I get the feeling that everything we knew and everything we thought we knew went out the window when we found that out.”

“Good point.” Danika nodded as she continued pacing. “We don’t even know enough to make proper assumptions. It’s all guesswork till we can figure out more. We try calling any experts again?”

“No dice D.” Mack shrugged. Giving his phone one last hopeful check before putting it away. “This early in the morning I doubt anybody’s answering anything.”

Danika cursed softly, both at the news and the complete lack of surveillance cameras that could have given her the solid video evidence she needed to bring to the network. She was about to go down another train of thought when a man dressed in a janitor’s uniform came wheeling a mop bucket out of the bathroom.

“Excuse me, sorry to bother.” Danika asked sweetly in her best I-know-you’re-busy-but-I-have-questions voice. “Have you noticed anything strange in or around this building recently? We received some reports that there could be a- rather large creature nearby.”

The man raised his eyebrows. “What? Like a bear? They wander by occasionally but they’re no problem unless you get stupid. Now, there was this one time when some city slickers thought they could get close to a black bear for pictures.” The man barked a laugh so loud it made Danika flinch a bit. “But no, that’s about it.” The man finished, leaning on his mop handle.

“Anything…” Danika started before she shrugged. “Stranger? Something you couldn’t explain?”

The man’s eyes lit up at once, in that special way that told Danika she was about to get a lot more than she’d asked for. “Ah, so you’re one of those ghost hunter types right? Well have I got some stories for you! Been working the late and early hours for let’s see… going on twenty four years now. Why, I can remember it like it was yesterday. This was about twenty years ago mind you, right after my great aunt Martha passed and I was just getting into the swing of the job when I felt a rattle in my bones-”

Danika smile was starting to strain as she desperately looked to her camera man to get her out of the conversation but Mack was no help. He’d found his way over to the vending machines and was creasing a dollar bill on the corner to feed into the machine. Deaf to Danika’s silent plea.

Despite being hungry for the truth of the Big Guy’s whereabouts she didn’t want to offend the Janitor in case he actually knew something that could help. However unlikely that may have been. It took some carefully leading questions from her to work him away from the ghost stories he was so eager to tell towards more current affairs but it wasn’t too hard. Everyone loved to complain about their jobs. You just had to give them an ear.

“It’s all these damn tourists I’m telling you! No respect at all for anything.” The man glowered as Danika mechanically nodded her head.

“What did they do this time?” She asked almost without thinking.

“Massive mess on the floor like you wouldn’t believe of course.” The man grumbled as he hooked a thumb behind him. “A bunch of maps just shredded across the floor like garbage. I mean seriously, who does that? They’re free damnit! Just pick one!”

“Shredded?” Danika asked immediately as she tuned back into the conversation.

“Oh yeah. Like someone took some scissors to the lot of them. They were all cut to pieces.”

It had taken a few more minutes for Danika to disengage from the conversation but she finally got away, dragging Mack along behind her as she wrangled with the lid of a garbage can outside the rest stop. Both her and Mack peeking inside to see the veritable stack of shredded maps. The sight of the trash putting a gleam in Danika’s eyes as if she’d found some hidden treasure.

“So the Big Guy actually did come for maps?” Mack said in disbelief. “I thought this was a stretch D but… are we absolutely sure this isn’t the result of a spoiled kid having a tantrum? There could be any number of reasons for this.”

Danika reached in and grabbed a handful of the shredded pieces. Grimacing a bit as she shook her hands free of the maps that had something in the garbage leak onto them.

“Mack how would the Big Guy read a map?” She asked as she looked over the pieces.

“He’d grab them? I don’t follow.”

“He has claws Mack. Made for fighting, not grabbing paper.” Danika said beaming as she imagined how the maps had been torn in the first place. “And these are all the same type of map. I’d bet that he was trying to read this map and couldn’t grab it without cutting it to pieces. He’s huge, not to mention he only has what, three fingers? It be like us trying to unfold a sticky note with razor blades on our thumbs.”

“That’s… plausible.” Mack nodded. “What kind of map is it? I’ll go grab an undamaged one from inside.”

Danika turned and handed Mack a piece of map that had most of the title intact. “Meet me at the rental?”

“Yeah, I’ll be right back.”

Ten minutes later, Danika glared at from the passenger’s seat as Mack got into the driver’s seat. Snatching the proffered map and quickly unfolding it onto the dashboard as she turned on the overhead light.

“I’ll be right back?” Danika glowered as Mack shrugged his innocence.

“I went to the bathroom.” He said defensively as Danika looked at him. Eyebrow raised in suspicion as the silence between them grew tense.

“Skittles?” Mack asked suddenly drawing out a bag of Skittles from his pocket. As if the offering could defuse Danika’s disappointment in her partner.

Shaking her head Danika focused her eyes on the map as Mack leaned in to read too, munching on candy like always. Tennessee Nature Trails, Hiking Paths, and Wilderness Areas was a good map surprisingly, the kind that could actually be useful to someone who needed to travel as it clearly marked different elevations and areas of dense forest. There was just one problem.

It didn’t give any hints as to where the Big Guy had gone.

Danika slumped in her seat as she rubbed circles into her temples. Trying and failing to come up with ideas for where their quarry had gone. “Mack, if you were a really big scaly dinosaur what would you want to look for on this map?”

“Food? Maybe its hunting.” Mack supplied before shuddering a bit. “God that’s a scary thought.”

“What’s scary? He’s friendly.” Danika said. Almost feeling she had to defend the Big Guy.

“D listen for a sec. I get why you feel that but we’re still talking about a giant monster here. Think about that. A creature that’s never been seen before that is twice the size of us. If the Big Guy wants food its going to get it, I doubt anything less than the military would be able to take it down. The idea that same monster is intelligent enough to grab a map.” Mack said pointing into the paper accusingly. “You have to admit that’s kind of horrifying right?”

“Okay. I can admit the situation is a bit scary.” Danika admitted. Memories of the gas station still fresh in her mind. “But this isn’t a horror movie Mack.”

“That’s what makes it worse.”

“How is that worse?”

“Because in horror movies, the monster is just a CGI prop that’s following a script. This is real life D. Let’s say the Big Guy started out knowing nothing. That would mean it learned. I’d be happier believing someone trained it because the idea of something that dangerous being able to reason out what a map is and how to read it without help is down right spooky.”

“That’s…” Danika started before trailing off. “Okay, I can agree that idea is rather unsettling. But it worked out for us right?”

“For us yeah. But whose to say there isn’t other intelligent monsters out there doing God knows what? The only thing that’s keeping me grounded at this point is the Square Cube Law.”

“The what now?” Danika frowned.

“You haven’t heard of the Square Cube Law?” Mack asked surprised. “It’s about how the size of creatures are limited because their volume increases exponentially as their surface area increases. It’s why animals only grow so large, because past a certain point their bodies can no longer support themselves due to their own proportional increase in mass. Thank goodness for that right?” Mack said with with a strained smile. “Imagine if these monsters could grow even bigger. That’d be a total nightmare.”

Danika’s mouth worked soundlessly for a moment as she stared at her cameraman. “Mack.” She started. “Don’t take this the wrong way but why are you a camera man?”

Mack looked nonplussed. Scratching the side of his head as he adjusted his baseball cap. “Because college is a racket and we’re in an overly competitive, increasingly automated job market hampered down by a stagnating economy.” He said simply.

“Right…” Danika said slowly as she got her brain back on track. “So any other ideas for where it could go?” She said as she gestured to the map.

“Other than the food idea I’ve got no clue. It’s basically guesswork from here on out.” Mack replied as Danika sagged in her seat.

“Damnit I was afraid of that.” She said staring at the map on the dash as though it could reveal some grand secret to her. She sat in silence for a moment before reluctantly folding up the map. Beyond she could see the rest stop plain as day through the windshield. She could almost picture the sight of her quarry standing next to it. The mental image of the Big Guy struggling to get in as he tried not to break the fragile glass doors should have been comical but it left Danika feeling pained.

There was a story to this creature that she was dying to understand. But even as she thought about it she just ended up with more questions instead of answers. Why save them? Where had it come from in the first place? Why had it been alone when the other monsters that had attacked them fought together? How was he different? Why was he different?

For years Danika had been working hard to get her career off the ground. She never been content to sit behind a desk and read the news other people gathered off a teleprompter. This was where she wanted to be- needed to be. Doing the real work that brought the truth out of the dark corners of the world and into the light. But all the time she’d spent being relegated to soft hitting interviews about local nothing burgers might have done more harm to Danika than good.

She had the fire, and she liked to think she had a good instinct for the truth as well. But the truth was that Danika was still green where it mattered most. Connections. A more seasoned reporter would have people they could call on for information, contacts who could come to her with leads. But Danika had none of that. She even hesitated to call her own network for help.

Jameson would be pissed she was asking for help without offering up concrete evidence to present to him as an offering. And if Danika went behind Jameson’s back to ask some of the others for help Suzy would swoop in and sabotage her like the witch she was.

“I don’t know where we need to go Mack.” Danika said sourly as she folded the map in her lap.

Her partner nodded somberly and turned on the rental’s engine without another word. Switching the car radio off as Mack pulled out his phone and gestured to it.

“I downloaded a police scanner app on the way over here. I know its not the best but if the police see the Big Guy we should hear them talking about him.”

Danika smiled in thanks at her partner as she buckled her seat belt on. “Thanks Mack. I’ll keep an ear on the scanner so you can just focus on driving alright?”

Mack grunted an affirmative as he slowly wheeled the car out of the rest stop’s parking lot and back towards the on ramp to the Interstate.

A comfortable silence settled between them as Danika let Mack drive and she let the police scanner do its thing. It chimed in intermittently but nothing in the police chatter Danika heard sounded like it could relate to the Big Guy’s whereabouts.

“Maybe we’ll have better luck staying in smaller towns like Fairview. Close to the woods but still near enough to get the police to come and help.” Mack supplied and Danika agreed half heartedly as she sunk into her seat and closed her eyes. She focused her attention on the occasional chatter hoping to hear someone miraculously break in and start talking about a giant green monster but no dice.

Wait, that might not be what I need to listen for. Danika thought to herself as she frowned. People might not understand what they were seeing. It was her entire profession after all to make sense of what people saw or in some cases, what they thought they saw. Someone might not be able to make out the Big Guy from a distance but if they saw the trees in a forest shake as he went by they’d hopefully call the police about something being out in the woods. Or maybe the Big Guy would go after a dumpster again and the police would be called for a wild bear problem? The Big Guy or the “Dumpster Dragon” as he’d originally been known in Fairview did seem to have a liking for dumpsters. Though would he really be inclined to eat from a dumpster again after eating the slew of chicken and turkey in the SuperMart?

Time passed as they drove down I-75, the pre dawn morning blessedly clear of the traffic that would inevitably fill it in a few hours. Danika listening to the Police Scanner the whole while until something caught her attention.

“Dispatch to Unit 17. We’ve got a report of a disturbance at the Barton Construction site over Centennial Pines. That new office complex. The caller believes they witnessed a partial collapse. Please head over to investigate. Over.”

“Unit 17 to Dispatch. We read you loud and clear. We’re on our way now and will let you know what we find. Over.”

The conversation was lacking any of the urgency Danika would have expected from something relating to the Big Guy. Plus the two voices were oddly calm and composed. Didn’t a partial collapse of a building call for a little more panic? But even as Danika’s mind unpacked the short conversation her gut pushed her to make a decision.

“Change of plans Mack.” Danika announced as she rapid fired Barton Construction and Centennial pines into her phone’s GPS. “Let’s get off at the next exit.”

“We got something?” Mack asked as he brought the car across two lanes of highway before they missed the off ramp. The lack of cars on the road blessedly making the stunt less dangerous than it should have been.

“I don’t know. Call it a hunch- ah take a right here.” Danika asked as Mack followed Danika’s instructions. “We’re still a ways out but better to check just in case right?”

Danika kept her ear focused on the police scanner, hoping that she’d get some confirmation that she was making the right choice. She looked worriedly down at her GPS as they drove, noting with a bit of worry how far they were from the construction site. It would take them over thirty minutes to get over there. Maybe they could-

“Dispatch to all units we have an emergency situation at Centennial Pines. A building collapse at Barton Construction has slid its way into the suburb at the scene. We’re getting some strange reports of mon- creatures at the scene as well. Be advised. Over.”

Mack and Danika both snapped their heads towards each other as they heard the police scanner erupt in chatter. The reporter and her camera man knowing exactly must be the cause of the emergency and what might be waiting at the scene.

“Step on it Mack! This is it!” Danika shouted as Mack rapidly accelerated, the buildings whizzing by them as the car rocketed to… to ten miles over the speed limit?

“What are you doing?” Danika cried out as Mack kept his eyes on the road. “This is the chance we’ve been waiting for! Floor it!”

“We can’t just ignore the law D.” He said testily. “I’m already going over the speed limit. We’ll get there in time to-”

“We are talking about the scoop of the century Mack! We can’t afford to slow down for anything!” She pleaded as she grabbed his shoulder.

“But-”

“Mack!” Danika said fiercely, changing tactics. “Do you have any idea of the money we could get for this footage?”

“Money?” Mack said eyes flicking over to his partner like a hound catching the scent of a fresh steak.

“This is gonna put us in the big time Mack! I’m talking the big big bonuses here!”

“A bonus.” Mack said faintly. Something bright shining in his eyes as he locked in. Staring at the road like he was a man on a mission.

“Yes! Now step on the ga- umph!” Danika had tried to say but the sudden acceleration of their car pressed her back into her seat. Even with the light traffic in the early morning horns blared at them as Mack swerved around cars. His driving speed instantly going from self conscious grandma to rally car driver.

“Give me the GPS.” He asked, his voice tense with focus as he held out a hand and Danika obediently placed the phone in it as she stared at her partner with wide eyes.

“Jesus Mack, do you have a gambling debt or something?”

“No.”

“You owe a loan shark?”

“No.”

“Student loans?”

“No.”

“Then where the hell is this coming from?” Danika asked slightly worried as she gripped the grab handle above the door with more force than was strictly necessary.

“Money can’t buy happiness.” Mack said simply as he cranked the wheel for a fast turn. The tires screeching along the asphalt as Mack systematically giving the phone in his hand quick glances as he confirmed his course. “But it can get you just about everything else, and that’s close enough to happiness for me.”

Once Mack had cleared the developed parts of civilization by blitzing through a red light instead of slowing down on the winding one lane road Mack accelerated. Much to Danika’s distress.

“Oh my God Mack slow down!” Danika said fearfully. Now clutching the grab handle above the door like it was a lifeline.

“Faster we get there the better footage we’ll get.” Mack said evenly as he took a turn that pressed Danika into her door.

“That won’t matter if the car gets wrapped around a tree Mack!”

“From what, this?” Mack said sounding slightly offended as he gunned the car down the road. The high beams shining barely enough light onto the road to see by as he drove. “This is nothing.”

“Where did you learn to drive?” Danika asked horrified as Mack shrugged.

“I grew up in a small town. Lots of back roads you know? I spent a lot of time racing the other high school kids back then.”

“But you never crashed right?” Danika asked. Some fresh sweat beading down her face at the speed they were going.

“Oh yeah, I crashed a ton of times. How else are you supposed to learn?” Mack said matter-of-factly as he cranked the wheel and sent the rental skidding onto a unmarked dirt road.

Danika was so focused on Mack’s perilous driving that she almost missed the chatter coming over the police scanner. “I think something’s happening Mack, how much farther?”

“Not far. The GPS wanted us to go along the main roads but I’m taking us around the back way. This will put us above the construction site a bit so hopefully we’ll get some good footage. There should be a good place at the top to film from.”

As Mack made the engine roar with effort as it climbed up the steep incline of the dirt road Danika grabbed the camera from the floor as she prepped it to record. Expertly configuring the settings to get the best footage out of the early morning light shining through the trees. A roar loud enough to carry over the hills and reach them made Danika flinch as her heartrate sped up but she steeled herself for what was to come.

They’re far away. This won’t be like before. She told herself as she tried to forget the image of a bloody arm lying in the dirt. Shoving her fear down deep so it wouldn’t get in the way.

It took less time than was strictly safe but Mack got them both to an overlook on the side of the road where the trees opened up. With Mack finally bringing the car the car to a harsh stop that left skids in the dirt, both him and Danika quickly got out of the car. Danika handing him the camera as he passed her phone back to her, the pair running towards the edge of the overlook. Arriving at the edge, Danika was immediately worried because she couldn’t see the construction site from here like she’d initially wanted. She was about to grab Mack and bring him back to the car when her eyes focused on the suburb visible below.

“Oh my God.” She whispered. Her partner’s silence and pale face speaking volumes as he hefted the camera to his shoulder and began recording.

The suburb looked like it had been hit by a natural disaster. Though the damage was much worse than what could be caused by simple storms if what Danika saw was anything to go by. There was a mishmash of houses with a wide range of damage between them. Some seemed to have had parts of their roofs torn open, others had their interiors exposed to the open air as parts of their walls had been torn away. The lack of people visible from this height and angle made Danika fear the worst though as she looked at the causes of the destruction.

There were four of the of the same kinds of monsters down in the suburb she could see from her vantage point, three of which weren’t moving. The same kinds that she’d seen in the gas station, although at a glance there were differences she could see between these and the ones she’d seen. The sight of blood pooling on the ground from the dead monster’s corpses made the inside of Danika’s stomach twist into knots but she held her ground. Then her eyes focused on the one monster still standing, the one that must have killed and eaten its way through most of the others.

“That’s him.” She said certain but Mack shook his head slightly. Not disturbing the camera with the motion as he quickly panned the camera over the carnage before zooming in.

“No, its not.” Mack said softly. One eye closed as he stared through his camera’s eyepiece “Look at its chest. See the red there. That’s not our guy.”

Danika frowned as she leaned closer to try and see what Mack saw. Thankfully with the sun starting to come up it was easier to make out. Mack was right, the Big Guy had been completely green. This monster had a reddish chest and neck. That realization made Danika’s heart speed up a bit. The Big Guy had saved their lives, but she wasn’t naïve enough to believe that behavior was common in the creatures that had tried to eat her before.

“Damnit.” She cursed as she accepted it wasn’t him. “What else do you see Mack?”

“It’s bigger than the Big Guy I think.” Mack said concerned. “See how tall it is compared to the houses? I think-”

The distant but unmistakable crack of a gunshot rang through the suburb as the red and green monster down in the suburb flinched as something sparked off its head. Making it turn and rear in the direction he shot had come from. The sight of the creature just shrugging off a bullet wound was enough to make Danika’s face blanch and cause Mack to hiss out a curse before saying in a tense whisper. “It’s bulletproof.”

“Are you sure?” Danika asked warily. Hoping that what she’d seen with her own eyes wasn’t true. The implications of theses monsters being bulletproof in addition to everything else was just…

“I just saw the thing get shot in the back of its head D.” Mack confirmed tensely.

Danika was by no means an expert on the subject but part of the reason she’d been able to accept and move on from almost being eaten alive was because she’d seen that the monsters that had almost killed her weren’t invincible. The gas station owner had been able to take down the smaller ones with a simple shotgun and even the Big Guy had made an effort to shield himself from the gunfire. It made the threat of these things less dangerous in Danika’s mind, even if they were still terrifying.

But that secret comfort she hadn’t even realized she’d relied on fell away and it’s absence left Danika feeling vulnerable. What were the police supposed to do if their guns weren’t enough to keep people safe? The military? For the first time in her life Danika hoped that the story she was pursuing wouldn’t go big. That the threat of these monsters would be small enough to go unnoticed by most people as the proper authorities dealt with it. It didn’t take much imagination to think of what the world could look like in the days and weeks to come if the government couldn’t handle these creatures.

And speaking of the government.

“Over there!” Danika pointed as Mack zoomed out on the camera to pan over to the police cars and sirens cresting the hill. Danika saw the monster in the suburb react to the sirens as it tried to crouch behind the cover of nearby houses and hide from view.

“D.” Mack said fearfully as he readjusted his grip on the camera. Drawing in a shaky breath as he did so.

“I know.” Danika said weakly. Her mouth suddenly as dry as a desert. It was only a matter of time before the police would find themselves face to face with the monster. And Danika had no illusions about what these monsters were capable of. It was very likely that both her and her partner would watch people die in the next few minutes. Brave men and women would lose their lives as they watched safe up on their vantage point. The only thing they could do was record. Record and hope that the footage they got could warn the world about this new threat to the world.

With a roiling ball of fear in his gut Mack was ready to keep a wide view of the ensuing battle to get as much of the action as possible. His instincts for good camera work still active despite the dire circumstances. That was when he saw the woman make a run for it.

The woman came from nowhere, probably hiding in her home until this point, and made a break for the sirens wailing their way down the suburb streets. Almost against his will, Mack turned the camera towards the woman as the monster in the street sighted and rushed towards her. Knowing with an agonizing certainty that he had a duty to make sure her final moments weren’t forgotten. The monster reached the woman in record time, right before the pool of blood leaking from one of the dead creatures. Danika pressed a hand over her mouth and Mack grit his teeth as the monster swept its claws down to sink into the woman’s-

Wait.

Staring through the camera Mack saw the beast grab the woman instead of tearing clean through. It picked her up like she weighed nothing as the beast slid to a stop from its sprint, just in time to see the police slam to a stop in front of it.

Mack heard Danika bite back a cry of worry as the police opened fire on the beast. Bullets flaring bright as they impacted the monster’s scales and it turned to run away as it hissed at its attackers. But wait, the way it turned as it was being shot almost looked like it was shielding the woman. That couldn’t be right.

With a speed that seemed too fast to be believed for a creature of its size the monster dashed down a row of houses and into their backyards. Its path easy to follow from their view above. The angle they were seeing it from only getting interrupted briefly whenever the monster was hidden by a house.

At any moment Mack expected the worst, that the monster would bite down on the helpless woman it was carrying. Tearing her head off just like he’d seen the Big Guy do in the gas station to its own kind. With his palms sweating Mack mentally prepared himself to see the woman’s lifeless corpse dangling from the monster’s mouth at any moment as the police’s distant shouts carried over to them. He kept the camera steady as he followed it’s path, hating what was about to happen as he saw the unconscious body in the monster’s grip. He wasn’t ready at all to see this but he had a duty to… to…

Mack stared. The breath almost stolen from his lungs as he watched the zoomed in image of the monster turn its head down towards the unmoving woman it held. It was partially obscured by the house it was standing behind but it seemed like it was looking at her. Not in the way a hungry beast would but as if it knew it was holding a precious life in its claws. The sight was both alien and familiar. Impossible, but all too real.

The monster carefully dipped its head down, the view interrupted only partially by a radio dish on one house as its turned back obscured its actions but Mack was zoomed in and seeing it all. He had seen how fast these creatures could move, knew how quickly they could kill. One of them had almost taken his own head off as it tried to tear a chunk out of him at the gas station. The way this one moved, Mack could almost see the monster nuzzling the woman tenderly before it crouched out of view. Disappearing for only a moment before standing with its arms free and moving away.

There was no fresh blood staining its maw. No shredded gore anywhere to be seen.

“It set her down.” Mack said in a shocked whisper. The implications of that too much for his mind to process.

“It did?” Danika said as she strained to see across the distance. Her face lighting up as she realized what she’d seen. “It did!” She cried out as she jostled Mack’s shoulder.

“Mack do you know what that means?” She asked excitedly as Mack kept his camera trained on the monster. Moving back to the police officers mobilizing to go after the beast as he watched events unfold.

“We can’t assume-” Mack began before Danika excitedly ran over him.

“It saved her! Like the Big Guy saved us!” Danika said pointing. “I’d bet money that it thinks its protecting her from what it thinks is a threat. That’s why it carried her away from the police!”

“D we still can’t- oh shit.” Mack cursed as he refocused his zoom on the scene below a fresh hail of gunshots ringing out towards the monster on the roof of a house as the police retreated back to their cars. The beast jumping down from the roof to give chase as it lumbered towards the cops.

“We have to get down there.” Danika said and the statement was enough for Mack to sharply turn towards her. Keeping the camera pointed down at the action as he tried to talk his partner down from a terrible idea.

“D.” Mack began firmly. Deliberately trying to keep the word crazy from adding itself to his next sentence. “We almost died the first time we met these monsters. I know you feel different but this is as close as I ever wanna get to these things again. Even if what we just saw-.”

“Saved a woman.”

“Even if what we saw is what we think we saw.” Mack said tensely. “D take it from me, depending on the angle you’re recording from one thing can look like a lot of different things. Like- ah damnit.” Mack cursed as he trained the camera on the monster charging the police through a constant stream of gunfire.

His heart lurched in his chest as the monster crushed a patrol car, hoping that nobody was still inside it as another patrol car came roaring in to smash into the beast’s leg, sending it crashing to the ground as the remaining officers piled in to drive away. An errant kick from the beast sending the car skidding a few feet before it caught a grip on the asphalt and drove away. It was the most amount of action Mack had recorded in his entire career working for Channel Seven.

A wave of relief washed over Mack at not being witness to any lives being lost in the exchange, right as his teeth clenched in horror as the monster picked up the empty patrol car next to it. Holding it above his head like it didn’t weigh thousands of pounds.

Then the monster threw the car.

The sight of a cop car soaring through the air was enough to leave even Danika speechless as it completed its arc and smashed back into the ground. With a sudden panic Mack checked his camera, double checking that yes, he had just recorded that.

Oh shit, he actually recorded that?

With the police rushing off, the light of their sirens forming a perimeter beyond the limits of the suburb the monster finally seemed satisfied that it had driven its attackers away. Then it started making its way over to the remains of the other monsters in the street as it slowly trudged along. Almost like it was depressed about something.

“Mack which way should we take down?” Danika asked fiercely as she scanned her surroundings.

“We aren’t going down there D.” Mack said trying to sound reasonable instead of exasperated. It hadn’t been something he’d thought of before but he found himself suddenly grateful the vantage point they were on was surrounded by dense foliage and a sheer cliff face. He was sure that if the incline towards the suburb was anything less than lethal Danika might try and fight her way down to get closer to the monster.

“Mack this is it, right here! This is what’s gonna put us both on the map! Don’t you want to have footage we can rub in Suzy’s stupid face?”

“I’m not worried about Suzy D I’m worried about putting our lives in danger.”

“In danger from what?”

“That.” Mack said pointedly.

“But it saved a woman.”

“It just attacked the police D.”

“But this could be huge Mack! This is the first monster we’ve seen that’s acted like the Big Guy and helped people.”

“Exactly my point. This isn’t the Big Guy D, it’s some other monster that we have no idea will do once we are close to it. Don’t you see it feeding? It’s tearing those other dead monsters to pieces! How does that not concern you? Don’t you know that its survival 101 not to approach animals when their feeding?” Mack said losing his cool a bit at his partner’s willingness to throw caution to the wind in the name of news.

Mack had known what he’d signed up for working with Danika since their talk in the motel. Ignoring his own good sense to cut and run since this story was obviously so much more than they’d originally believed it to be. That and he also didn’t have any other jobs lined up to replace this one.

“But what if it is like the Big Guy Mack? We can’t miss out on this.”

“We’re not missing out on anything. We’re recording up here, where its safe.” Mack said stressing the word safe since Danika seemed to put so little importance on it. “And why should we think this one’s like the big guy in the first place?” Mack continued. “It’s got red scales where the Big Guy had pure green ones. This is a completely different creature.”

“They could be similar.” Danika began as she watched the monster feed. The beast tearing through the remains with enough gusto to spatter blood and viscera in a small circle around it. Maybe it was a good thing Danika wasn’t too close to the monster. Just the thought of getting some red spatter in her hair made Danika shudder in revulsion.

After a time watching the monster as it finished eating Danika frowned. “Mack something’s wrong. It looks like its sick. What’s happening?”

It was true. Mack made sure to zoom in on the creature as it stiffly stood in place, fidgeting sharply every now and then as it seemed to be fighting something. Was it indigestion? It had absolutely shredded the remains of the monsters it had been eating while he and Danika argued. How could it have eaten so much without any adverse effects?

Mack kept his eye over the camera’s eyepiece as Danika worried beside him. Which gave him the perfect view to watch the monster as it shuddered one final time and its tail snapped out like a shoot of bamboo on a time-lapse. It grew. Both the tail and the monster as Mack’s jaw fell open at the change. A change that happened far too fast for any normal creature. It even left Danika speechless as he felt her practically glue herself to the safety railing as she stared down at the newly transformed creature.

It’s tail, rather than being the thick sturdy thing it had been before had fundamentally changed. It was long and sinewy, tapering down from the wide base of the tail down to a thin point. Even the monster itself seemed surprised at the change as it regarded its altered appendage and experimentally waved it through the air. Mack distinctly got the sense that the monster was more curious than shocked at its change. Like it had been expected.

“What.” Danika started as her mouth opened and closed. Trying and failing to form the questions running rampant through her brain. “How did… How is that…”

“Possible?” Mack supplied as he slowly turned to Danika. “I have no idea. At all.”

“We… we’re gonna need to call that expert sooner rather than later.” Danika said as Mack mutely nodded at her words.

For a moment Danika and Mack just watched the monster move as it wagged its new tail around. A slightly mad chuckle escaping Mack as he watched the beast pick up a lawn chair with its tail and wave it around like a toy.

“How big do you think that thing is Mack?” Danika asked warily as she watched the monster. Trying to imagine how tall the creature was compared to her.

“I dunno. Looks to be over ten feet. It definitely grew a bit when it changed though unless I’m seeing things.”

Danika nodded as she watched the monster. It had set the chair down by this point and had started to move away from the police sirens lining the outer perimeter of the suburb. With the path it was taking it was heading slightly away from them at an angle towards the edges of the forest.

The change it had undergone made Danika’s mind run wild with possibilities. She’d only gotten passing grades in high school biology but even she knew that it should have been impossible for any living creature to grow a part of themselves in just a few seconds. From what remained of the monster corpses in the suburb it looked like they had some differences between them as well. If they could change themselves like that how might the Big Guy change once they found him again? Would he be bigger once they found him? Maybe he’d even grow a tail like the monster down in the suburb? Or maybe even…

“Red scales…” Danika said slowly with her eyes widening. “Mack! Mack I think that’s him, that was our guy!”

Mack turned sharply towards Danika as he cradled the camera in his arms. “D. That looked like a completely different creature. It’s even taller than the Big Guy is, now that it did… that.”

“But you know what we just saw Mack, it changed. Or evolved or whatever right there.” Danika said pointing down towards the land below in emphasis. “The Big Guy is the same kind of monster right? Why shouldn’t it be able to do the same thing? Come on, let’s get to the car!”

“You’re making assumptions again D.” Mack said begrudgingly as he jogged back to the rental with his partner. Gently placing the camera inside as he followed his usual post recording routine, which only took about thirty seconds before Mack was satisfied and climbed in to drive.

“We’ve got to follow it!” Danika said as Mack got the engine running and wheeled the car around.

“From a safe distance.” Mack said in response as he went down a separate dirt road. One that felt more like a wilderness trail than something that could be classified as a road.

“If we can just get close to it...” Danika said determined as Mack gave her a stern glare.

“Getting close to the giant monster is not a safe distance D.”

“What if it is for this one?”

“Safety doesn’t make exceptions.”

“Safety doesn't make exceptions.” Danika replied in a droll tone. “How can you expect to get the footage we need if we don’t take risks?”

“There’s risks.” Mack said holding up a finger. “Then there’s blatant disregard for your own life and safety. Which do you think you’re leaning towards right now?”

“If this is the Big Guy then there shouldn’t be any risk.” Danika said trying to plead her case but Mack wasn’t having it.

“That’s a pretty big if D.”

“Well fine!” Danika said in a huff. “What do you suggest we do?”

“We get as close as we can with the car and keep to the trees for cover. We can still get footage of it moving through the- shit!”

Mack slammed on the brakes as the rental came to a skidding stop in the dirt. Almost clipping the large fence that took up the entire dirt path they had been driving on that would have taken them into the construction site. There didn’t seem to be a way around, the fence just continued on through the trees and there wasn’t enough room for the car to do anything other than reverse back the way they’d came.

Danika was out the door like a shot, her head swiveling from left to right as she tried to pick out gaps in the fence she could squeeze through.

“D!” Mack said warningly as he got out of the car. “Just let it go alright, we already got enough footage. Let’s just- and she’s gone.” Mack sighed as his partner immediately set off in one direction. The cameraman allowing himself a moment to ask the universe “Why me?” before he reached into the back seat to grab the camera and follow Danika.

Despite Mack’s hopes that the construction company that had built this fence would have spared no expense making sure it was impenetrable Danika managed to find a gap in just a few minutes time. The gap just barely big enough to fit through if you sucked in your gut.

“Pass me the camera.” Danika said as Mack obliged. The camera might have been small but it wouldn’t fit through the gap without breaking off part of its delicate exterior. On the count of three Mack tossed the camera over the fence as Danika caught it like a football as her partner squeezed through and reluctantly joined her on the other side.

A crash reverberated through the woods as Danika and Mack flinched at the noise.

“Remember we are staying back so we’re hidden in the tree line.” Mack whispered as Danika quickly nodded. The pair of them moving silently through the brush as they crept closer towards the source of the noise. They were moving at a crawl when Mack’s hand gripped her shoulder as he pointed out towards the open. It was hard to make out with so many trees in the way but…

There he is. Danika thought as she saw the monster tear through the remains of a number of smaller monsters. Mack shifting beside her as he hefted the camera to his shoulder to record.

It’s him. I know its him. Danika reassured herself as she tried to imagine how the monster that had saved her life could change so much in the short time they’d been apart.

He won’t hurt me. I know he won’t. Danika thought as she closed her eyes and took a step forward. The camera Mack was holding blinding him to her movements until he looked at her in tense shock. “D! Don’t!” He fiercely whispered as Danika got too far for him to pull back.

With careful steps Danika left the safety of the trees as she strode out into the open. The clearing of concrete rubble and twisted rebar making the monster before her as clear to see as he’d ever been before.

“Hey Big Guy.” Danika started nervously. “It is you isn’t it? You remember me don’t you?”

=====================================================================

Ryker stared in shock at the woman who’d come out of the trees. He remembered who she was of course, how could he forget. Even if it felt like a small lifetime ago that he’d torn his way into a gas station to save her life and shielded her with his body from an explosion.

How is she here? How is this even… Ryker thought mutely. Still stunned at what he was seeing cautiously walking towards him. She was even smaller to him now that she’d been before. He’d been what? Ten feet tall the last time he’d seen her, he’d grown an additional three feet since then. If he stood to his full height she’d only come up to the middle of his thigh.

“Hey Big Guy.” She said with only a slight tremor in her voice. “It is you isn’t it? You remember me don’t you?”

She was speaking to him. Actually talking to him.

Like a person.

A wave of relief swept over Ryker that managed to push back the dark cloud of fatigue smothering him. He’d been forcing himself to accept that he’d never have any meaningful interaction with humanity again after his encounter with the police. That for the future of humanity he’d have to remain the outcast his monstrous form made him.

But if this woman was reaching out to him maybe things could be different. A fresh surge of hope grew in Ryker, brighter than ever before. He didn’t have to be alone for the rest of his life. If one person could see him for what he was maybe he could change the-

The timeline! Ryker thought fearfully as he took a large step back from the woman as he recoiled in horror. For a moment his feelings had blinded Ryker from the reality of the situation. This was far far too early in the timeline for information about him to spread. Jesus, he was still too weak to survive a dedicated military offensive bulletproof or not. A few missiles might be all it would take to kill him if he wasn’t careful, then humanity’s enemies would still survive to bring the world to ruin.

But the military finding out about him was only one consequence out of thousands that Ryker was terrified of bringing about. If people had seen him acting friendly with humans then he could accelerate the formation of the Children of Gaia and their rapid decline into extremism. People around the world would believe Kaiju were just wild animals to be protected and tamed instead of monsters that needed to be hunted to extinction. What would happen to Beck if the Children tried to kill him earlier in the timeline? They could succeed if the timeline diverged too significantly.

Ryker’s mind raced for a solution as he stood frozen, as if any amount of movement could set in motion the possible futures he was considering. Did he scare the woman away? Attack her? Did he run? What should he do? What was he supposed to do?

As if sensing the fear rising up in Ryker the woman took a step forwards, her hands held up with her palms out like she was trying to calm a wild animal.

“Easy there. It’s okay. It’s alright. I don’t want to hurt you. I just… never got to thank you. For saving me.” The woman said comfortingly. Inching closer to Ryker as she spoke. The tiny woman somehow not scared away by a monster over twice her size. The absurdity of the scene would have been hilarious if the consequences of it weren’t so dire.

As focused as Ryker was on the woman approaching him he took an involuntary step back that slipped over the rubble again. He caught himself, but the stinging bite of his gut wound from the Charger’s horn flared in his side as he clutched his side and fell to his knees.

“You’re hurt!” The woman gasped out as she raced up to him. Her eyes going wide as she got close and took in the full extent of Ryker’s wounds. The gore wound still leaking a steady stream of blood, the acid burns over his eyes, and the countless number of cuts from slashing claws and biting fangs covering Ryker’s body. They would heal in time, probably without leaving too much scarring hopefully, but the damage couldn’t be ignored. “Oh no.” She said pained as she stepped within arms reach of him. And before Ryker could do anything to react, he felt her hand press against his side.

The contact should have easily fallen beneath Ryker’s notice with her hand being so small compared to him, but the feel of it made Ryker flinch like he’d been dunked into ice water. The enhancements to his senses making the gentle touch bright in his mind as she ran her fingers over his scales.

“What happened to you?” She whispered, horrified at the damage she saw.

Ryker sagged as his head bowed forward. A shuddering breath draining from his lungs as he deflated under her hand on him. It should have meant nothing to him but that small acknowledgement of his pain and what he’d been through, even from a stranger, was like a gut punch to the man turned monster.

With his head low to the ground the woman’s hand left his side and moved to the side of his face. The slight tremble in her touch growing as she fought to keep her voice steady.

“Can you… can you understand me?”

Ryker hesitated. His inner turmoil practically screaming at him to turn and flee to keep the future from diverging too drastically, but it wasn’t enough. Underneath the scales and monstrous strength of his Kaiju body he was still human. The desire to connect to others was just too great to ignore.

With a slow, shaky movement Ryker bobbed his head up and down. The nod was small, careful not to dislodge the hand pressed against his face but a nod all the same.

“O-okay.” The woman sputtered before letting out a short bark of a laugh. “Okay! Wow, wow I was hoping but all this time but I couldn’t be sure till you ah… Yeah.” She said swallowing audibly.

“Just listen to me alright.” She spoke up determined. “You’re hurt bad. We can get you help. I don’t know how yet but we’ll find somebody who can fix you up okay?”

Ryker sighed as he gently shook his head and looked at the woman through his mixed senses. Her whole body was a swirl of warm sounds and loud scents that reverberated through her hand and into his scales. He could feel the quick patter of her heartbeat pulsing through her palm, mixing with the fear tinged in and out of her slowly calming breath. She seemed so fragile next to him. How could he have made such an impression on her that she’d come after him? Even if he had saved her life, any rational person should have run screaming at the sight of him and never looked back.

“No?” She asked confused. “What do you mean no? You don’t want help?”

What the hell can I say? There’s so much you don’t know. So much you shouldn’t know. Ryker thought to himself. There was so much inside him that wanted to get out, to tell anybody regardless of the consequences that it was jamming up inside his throat. He could write something surely, but where the hell did he even begin? The current Stage One Kaiju? The threat of Storm Breaker and the others? His own intentions?

“Please. I know you’re different from them.” The woman said as she pointed to the remains of the Kaiju Ryker had eaten with a wave. “You have to help me understand why. If there’s others like you we have to-”

Ryker shook his head more roughly this time, dislodging the woman’s hand and making her step back with a frown at Ryker’s suppressed growl and bared teeth.

“There aren’t others like you?” She said questioningly. Her expression growing more frustrated as she asked again. “But why? These monsters are killing people and you’re the only one of them who’s tried to save us. Why did you try to save that woman just a few minutes ago? Why didn’t you let me die back at that gas station? Please, I have to know!” She said with unshed tears gleaming in her eyes.

I can’t tell you that. Ryker thought with a pained sadness. Revealing his true nature would draw too much attention to him too quickly. His greatest advantage now was relying on the chaos caused by the other Stage Ones breaking out into the world and remaining unknown to the world at large. He was no fool, and a lifetime of military service had done wonders to temper any hope of the government taking a reasonable course of action for him. If they thought him a threat, they would either kill or capture him. Simple as that. No matter the outcome he wouldn’t be able to grow strong enough to challenge Storm Breaker and the others.

If I did tell you… Ryker thought as he pictured his younger self. Home with his mom and dad. He wanted his younger self to live a life not knowing the horrors he’d known. To live the kind of quiet, boring life Ryker had always dreamed of before killing Kaiju became his entire world.

The truth was that if he revealed his identity, that peace he’d dreamed of giving his younger self would disappear overnight. He could just imagine the government spooks swarming over his family. Interrogating his innocent teenage self for answers he couldn’t possibly know.

No. Ryker decided. For all intents and purposes, he was a monster to the world. Keeping up the act was just the best way he could think of to keep his younger self safe and unconnected to him.

That didn’t mean he couldn’t give this woman an answer though.

Ryker may have done his best so far to keep his identity and intelligence secret, but this woman had recognized his intelligence right from the start. Even when he’d just saved her life, she hadn’t run away. A part of Ryker felt he had to repay that. Plus, with the confidence that this woman had to approach him and ask him questions. He needed to set the record straight before she hurt herself trying to talk to other Kaiju. Just in a way that would be believable for a monster.

Ryker bent down and touched one claw to a bare slab of concrete at his feet. Scratching letters into its surface with ease, like the concrete was just dirt to be easily parted. It was only four letters, each scratched into the concrete in sharp jagged angles. But it was unmistakable what Ryker had written.

“Good.” The woman said, staring at the word wide eyed. The shock of the confirmation enough to send her stumbling back a step. Given undeniable evidence that the giant monster next to her could write. “You’re good.” She said breathlessly.

Ryker nodded as he held a claw to his chest. Making sure there was no doubt as to who he was referring to. Then he pointed a claw towards the remains of the Kaiju he’d eaten. A growl forming on his lips as he took the same claw that pointed towards the Kaiju and slashed it through the word he’d written with a vengeance. Nearly bisecting the slab of concrete itself as he cut through the word.

The woman seemed to pale as she stared at the remains of what Ryker had written. A haunted shadow passing over her face as she whispered.

“Not good…” She turned from the remains of the word in the concrete to the remains of the monsters that Ryker had eaten. “Then none of them… That’s why you kill them.” She said looking up at Ryker. “You don’t want to hurt us. But they do.”

Ryker nodded again, rising to his full height until he towered over the woman. That was the most he dared to risk communicating. As long as she understood that Kaiju were the enemy, he was satisfied. Ryker’s earlier fears about altering the timeline too drastically were still there but felt like an over reaction now where this woman was concerned. She was just one person after all. Who’d believe her if she said that she’d had met an intelligent Kaiju?

“Wait, where are you going?” She called out as Ryker turned and started walking towards the edge of the clearing. “Stop!” She shouted as she tried to keep pace with Ryker, but even on the rough terrain each of his strides was at least a half dozen of hers.

“You’re going to get yourself killed! Don’t you understand?” She desperately yelled after him. “You can’t fight them all alone! Let me help you! I can help people understand you’re different!”

Ryker kept his head pointed forwards even when his pace slowed as the woman called after him. It hurt to get so close to someone and then have to leave like this, but he had to do it. What else was he supposed to do? Team up with this stranger and hope for the best? Believe that things would work themselves out if he blatantly showed off his friendliness and intelligence to the military? That may have worked for a low budget kid’s movie but this was real life. The military would do what they always did, shoot first and ask questions later. He knew that better than anyone since he’d been the one doing the shooting in his past life.

“Don’t just stand there Mack help me get him!” The woman said as Ryker turned his head questioningly.

Mack? Who… Ryker began before his thoughts immediately derailed at the sight of the man coming out of the trees. Through the mix of scents and tastes in the air Ryker recognized the man as the same one he’d saved along with the woman at the gas station. But that wasn’t what stopped Ryker cold.

It was the camera on his shoulder pointed straight at him.

Immediately half a dozen connections clicked together in Ryker’s mind as he reeled from the realization of who the people he’d saved really were. The words spoken to him just seconds earlier taking on a terrifying new meaning as they seemed to reverberate through his head. Let me help you, she’d said.

I can help people understand you’re different.

Jesus Christ they’re both reporters! Ryker thought in horror as his jaw fell open and a strangled cry died in his throat.

Out of all of the people on the entire planet Ryker would have chosen to avoid, he’d somehow managed to save and attract the attention of the very people who’s job it was to try and reveal his secrets. Who would record and air footage of him that would be the spark to ignite the Children of Gaia’s extremism. And he’d just given them the mother of all sparks by communicating with this reporter in writing.

What would this one single interaction mean for the timeline? How many disasters had he just set in motion? How many well meaning people would die trying to make peace with the monsters that would only bring death and destruction?

A low growl grew in Ryker’s chest that made both reporters step back in unison as Ryker stared at the cameraman. The woman holding up a cautioning hand to Ryker and to her partner.

“Wait, Big Guy listen to me. He’s a friend, he’s not going to hurt you.” The woman said tensely as Ryker took a single step towards the man. “Mack take a few steps back.”

“D.” Mack said hesitantly as he complied, walking backwards into the bushes. Camera still pointed towards Ryker. “D he’s still looking at me.”

Even as the woman moved to put herself between Ryker and the cameraman Ryker took another step forwards. He’d revealed too much. If that footage made it out into the world there would be no telling how much damage it would cause to Ryker’s plans and to the world at large. It needed to go. Now.

Give me that camera. Ryker hissed as he took a large step towards the cameraman.

“No! Stop!” The reporter shouted as she tried to block Ryker’s path but he easily stepped around her. Even running she was too small to match his pace as he marched towards the tree line. Each step shaking the earth and eating up the distance in a matter of seconds as the man in the bushes made a break for it with a cry of alarm.

Sprinting, the cameraman tried to use the closeness of the trees to buy himself some distance but Ryker easily shouldered his way through obscuring branches and snapping tree limbs as he gained on the man. Moving at a brisk walk that was more than enough for Ryker to catch up to the man and cut his escape off. Slamming one clawed foot down in front of the man with enough force to shake the trees and cause him to stumble as he dropped the camera.

Looming over the man, casting him entirely in his shadow Ryker lifted his leg again as the man desperately scrambled backwards on the ground. His hands raised protectively above himself as Ryker ruthlessly stomped down on the camera. The metal and plastic instantly getting crushed under his foot as he stomped on it again and again. As if the footage it held were a cockroach that might survive if he didn’t put his full weight into it.

After a full dozen ground shaking stomps Ryker stepped back. The three toed crater he’d smashed into the earth speckled with the remains of the camera. Warped beyond all recognition as only gray pieces remained.

Despite protecting his image and ending the threat of the camera’s footage making it out into the world. Ryker felt a coiling knot in his gut as he looked upon the cowering man before him and heard the frantic screams of the only woman who’d showed him kindness since his awakening as a monster.

He’d fucked up, and because of that fuck up he’d had to terrify the very people who’s lives he’d saved.

I’m sorry. Ryker thought painfully towards them both as he fled into the deeper wilderness. His speed increasing as he ran away from the guilt of his actions. Hoping that he’d made the right decision even as his heart told him he hadn’t.

========================================================

“Mack!” Danika cried out as she ran through the forest. Terrified in a way even the monsters hadn’t been able to make her feel as she searched for her cameraman. She had brought him out here. He was only here because of her. If something happened to-

“H-here…”

“Mack?” Danika said as she zeroed in on the voice she’d heard. Running through the dense brush until she found a sight that nearly made her swoon in relief.

“Mack! Oh thank God, Mack are you okay?” She asked worriedly.

Mack was lying on the ground with his back up against a thick tree trunk as he held a hand over his heart. The rise and fall of his chest a rapid beat as he got his breathing under control. Mack’s baseball cap had fallen off next to him. That he hadn’t immediately retrieved it to put it back where it belonged on his head told Danika volumes about how shaken up Mack was.

“Okay?” Mack said shakily as he turned to look at Danika with wide eyes. Like the word was completely foreign to him. “Physically…? Maybe. Emotionally…? No, not in the slightest.”

“I’m so sorry Mack. I don’t know what got into him.” Danika said more than a little shaken herself as she kneeled down to pick up Mack’s cap and hand it to him.

“Got into him?” Mack said taking the cap and holding to his chest like it was a totem against evil. Shaking his head he gawked at his partner. “He almost stepped on me. I could’ve been gone just like that. Or- like that.” Mack said weakly as he gestured towards a dent in the earth.

“Oh shit.” Mack began as he gulped in a lungful of air and held a hand to his head. “Holy shit I’m gonna need a minute.” Mack said as he closed his eyes tight and got his breathing under control.

Danika gave Mack some breathing room as she looked at the footprint the Big Guy had left just a few feet away from her partner. Feeling sick at knowing the Big Guy had spared her any grief and went after Mack instead.

“Damnit.” Danika cursed under her breath at the situation as she wiped away some frustrated tears before they could fall. She knew she shouldn’t have felt this way but it almost felt like a betrayal the way it had attacked Mack. Couldn’t the Big Guy tell they were trying to help? He was even trying to communicate with her so why do this? Why attack Mack and his-

“The camera!” Danika wailed as she fell to her knees before the ruined device. Her golden ticket reduced to smithereens as she tried and failed to find any still intact portion that might house the memory card.

The footage they’d just recorded of the Big Guy in the suburb would have been on there.

Danika slumped as she dug her nails into the dirt. Frustration leaving her shaking as she tried to process what just happened and what they’d just lost. This would have been better than what she’d recorded in the gas station by lightyears and now the best footage she’d ever gotten in her life was just… gone.

Proof of the monster that had saved her life, had saved someone else. That at least one of the beasts was capable of intelligent thought. There was also a high octane encounter with the police that would have rocked people’s socks off but that was besides the point. Even if that footage would have rocketed Danika to the top of the network they’d would have had to do some major editing to make all that gunfire and violence airable on primetime-

“Oh.” Danika said softly as she held a hand to her head. “Oh fuck.” She breathed.

“You good D?” Mack said as he got up. A little shaky but growing more steady every second as he crouched down next to Danika.

“We fucked up Mack.” Danika said as she shook her head.

“What are you talking about?” he said frowning.

“The camera.” Danika said sorrowfully as she waved to the debris. “He only turned to come at you after he saw you with the camera.”

“I… don’t get it.” Mack began as Danika became more animated.

“The Big Guy just had a bunch of police officers shooting at him Mack! And with the camera on your shoulder it looked like it could have been a gun!”

“That’s a bit of a stretch.” Mack said as he regained some of his normal vigor. “I mean they don’t really look similar at all.”

“To you sure! But to the poor monster who’d just been shot how could he tell the difference!” Danika said as she clasped a hand over her mouth with fresh tears forming in her eyes. “Oh Mack, he just didn’t want to get hurt again! He was bleeding when I got close to him, with cuts all over! And his eyes, he must be almost blind! And we- we-”

A sniffle from Danika as she buried her head in her hands left Mack staring at his partner in confusion before an icy cold fear swirled through his chest. Was Danika…crying? Here? Now? Was there- was there something he was supposed to do here?

Mack swiveled his head around the forest they were in hoping someone might be able to come to his rescue but he was still unfortunately alone. Feeling torn and having no idea how best to comfort his partner in reporting Mack gingerly placed a hand on Danika’s back as he patted it. You were supposed to smack someone on the back when they were choking, so lighter pats would work for crying right?

Danika’s voice was hard to make out as she pressed her hands against her face but as time passed Danika came back to herself as she ran her sleeve across her nose with one last sniffle.

“Thank you Mack.” She said earnestly. “It’s just… we can’t even prove to anyone that he’s good without the footage from the suburb and now that’s gone. I’m sorry Mack, I know you worked so hard getting it. It would have looked great.”

“It will look great.” Mack nodded as Danika wiped her face till no trace of her tears remained.

“It will… what?” Danika asked as she frowned. “Mack the camera’s gone. There’s nothing left.”

“Well yeah, we are going to have to get a new one.” Mack acquiesced. “And the footage of you and the Big Guy together isn’t coming back but I still have the first recording. The one I got from the overlook earlier.”

Danika froze for a long beat as she processed that information before she practically leapt at Mack. Gripping both his shoulders as she shook her partner with joy.

“We still have that footage!” She beamed as Mack smiled wryly. Pulling out a memory card from his pocket.

“Come on D. Is it really that surprising that I’d back up my footage the first chance I’d get? I did it before we drove over here.”

“Oh Mack you’re the best!” Danika shouted as she surprised Mack by wrapping him tight in a fierce bear hug. One that pinned his arms to his sides and left him feeling slightly claustrophobic before Danika broke the hug.

“Let’s go!” Danika called out as she ran back towards the hole in the fence that would lead back to the rental. “We’ve got to get that footage out to the network so it can get touched up before they air it tonight!”

“On my way.” Mack said as he dutifully followed Danika back towards the car. The woman practically skipping her way through the forest as the knowledge of the surviving footage lifted her spirits all the way to cloud nine.

With this proof they could show the world the truth about the monster that saved their lives. That it was misunderstood, and that even if it was strange and terrifying at times at the core of its being, it was good.