Godzilla Lives!
A Godzilla fanfiction by Travis J. DeSantis
Chapter Twenty
The restroom door burst open and Hiroshi scrambled in. It was a narrow room with stalls, urinals, and wash basins on one side; several benches beneath a bank of windows on the other. Normally, this restroom had an uncanny view of the tranquil Pacific Ocean. But a deep black storm had just hit and the driving rain that pelted the windows only served to remind Hiroshi of his predicament.
Hiroshi was a technician employed by Chubu Electric Power Company. He and his coworkers were being run ragged to make sure everything was in order for the upcoming initiation of the Hamaoka Nuclear Power Station's new Unit No.5 reactor. They were right on schedule for next January, when Unit No.5 would begin commercial operation. But ever since Hamaoka reached the 400-billion kWh power generating milestone last year, the higher-ups were being very cautious, so Hiroshi had to maintain control his bodily functions during one of their surprise system checks. Even though he worked primarily in the Research Center, everyone was being worked into overtime.
The beleaguered man hurried over to a urinal and went about his business, relief spreading through him. Hiroshi sighed, listening to the pounding storm outside, which was punctuated by the occasional clap of thunder. The weather was miserable and the view was ruined, but any break was a welcome one and the rain was all the incentive he needed to clear his own system. Hiroshi flushed gratefully and ambled over to the wash basin, dipping his hands in wake-inducing cold water.
*CRACK-A-BOOM!*
A strike of lightning flashed outside, reflecting in the mirror above the faucet. He watched as a glowing spider web was traced in the clouds.
"All the trouble we go to for a bit of that power and nature whips that stuff around like child's play," the technician mused. Unsure why he suddenly felt philosophical, Hiroshi shrugged and looked back down. He washed his hands carefully because there'd be hell to pay if a single smudge of dirt was found on the controls.
Absorbed in his efforts, the man didn't notice as another bright flash drove the world into sharp contrast. In that moment of illumination, a dark shape was silhouetted against the storm sky. Black on black rose from the Pacific, it's arrival masked by the turbulent storm.
Finished at last, Hiroshi turned off the water and reached for the blow drying unit on the wall. He tapped the button once, twice, nothing. Glaring in annoyance, he punched the button hard. What met his ears was not the gentle hum of warm air, but the tortured sound of rending metal. The entire room shook, as if to protest the appliance's abuse.
"Okay okay! I'm sorry!" the man cried, clutching the wash basin so as not to lose his balance.
Alert sirens began to wail throughout the power station. Hiroshi glanced out the window, drawn by the sight of something flying in the air. Another bolt of lighting cut the sky, highlighting what was most definitely not a bird or plane. What he thought was something in flight was merely part of something far larger. He could not make out the outline of something impossibly huge walking out of the ocean.
The tech felt panic and fear creep into his mind as he watched the mass of black step forwards with the long gait of a giant. Whatever it was, it clearly had a purpose, as it unerringly crossed the compound. Clawed fists that could close around a hum-vee reached down to the building that housed the new Unit No.5 reactor. Hiroshi watched in mute horror as the monster easily tore open the reinforced structure like opening a can of sardines.
Years of training fled him as the technician stood transfixed by the destruction. The reactor had surely been damaged and its deadly radiation would spread quickly. He should be running for protection, evacuating the compound. But he could only observe the scene through the wide bank of windows like it was a movie.
The behemoth roared again, the sound of its voice shaking the building down to the foundation. It glowed oddly, as if bathing in the nuclear ambiance. One by one, the biblical monstrosity glutted itself on the fruits of mankind's labor.
