Man's Arrogance: Why Are They Here? by 105697 on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

Skull Mountain is truly a towering construct of geological processes. Stretching miles into the sky, it is a tactical vantage point that has a view of everything for hundreds of kilometers, from the Graveyard to the west and the Atu Village to the east. Its position between the two also allowed Kong to intercept any invasions by those skull demons whenever they tried to wreak havoc on the land to the east, acting in conjunction with the sea just below the mountain as a barrier against these terrifying beasts. But the peak of the mountain was also of great psychological importance to Kong. Stretching far above the cacophony of the green hell below, it was a place Kong could unwind and relax, if only very briefly, in between island patrols. The two monsters traversed up the rocket escarpment of the mountain, claws digging into the rock-like grappling hooks to pull them up. Eventually, they reached their intended destination. A few thousand feet up, on a massive horizontal overhang covered by a few sparse trees and blankets of moss, there was the several-day-old carcass of a senile dicynodont. There, Kong had left one of his meals, the several days old carcasses of a senile dicynodont, one of several caches he has stored in the cold, high elevations of his mountain home where there are fewer scavengers and decomposers to break it back down into basic nutrients. After ripping off some flora that had begun to rapidly grow on the meat and bones, he cracked open the horn of the fallen synapsid and slurped down the bone marrow that was still stored inside the bones. He handed the bone over to Jyarumu, but the daikaiju promptly declined. She didn't have the dentition to crack open bones, nor the ability to get at the bone marrow stored inside herself. She much preferred to feast on the meat itself. With that, Kong grabbed a sharpened hand ax that was placed near the carcass and sliced off what meat had remained on the carcass up to this point. It wasn't much and it was a bit chewy and tough due to how long it had been up here in the cold mountain air, but it was still soft enough for Jyarumu to process, and she began tearing into each hunk of flesh. She seemed to savor the taste of her scavenged kill, ripping pieces off instead of easily swallowing the thing whole. Yep, she was definitely hungry after all that she'd been through. The two daikaiju continued their snack, breaking off bones and additional hunks of flesh from the dead dicynodont as the morning Sun finally dawned on the horizon and began to bathe the island in its radiant light.

Once she seemed comfortable enough, Kong decided to bring up an inquiry. Where did she come from? Jyrarumu paused from her meal and looked off into the distance south, seemingly reminiscing for a moment while also taking in the view of the jungles, open lowlands, wetlands, and the sea they spilled into. She came from a land of ice and snow, the frozen hell at the bottom of the world. She and other titans lived in a system of underground tunnels that ran through the bedrock and were warmed by pockets of geothermal heat that had kept said tunnels ice-free for millions of years. Great underground forests of ancient vegetation, similar to what she is seeing all across this island, filled this underground expanse, giving way only to open tundra and grassland closer to the surface where it grew too cold for them. It was a hidden world teeming with all sorts of life. But things began to change quickly. She wasn't around for when it happened, but hundreds of thousands of years ago, the ice on the surface grew greater and greater, covering and crushing the land beneath it. Tunnel systems grew more constrained, and the geothermal vents that had kept them warm all these millions of years were smothered by growing glaciers. The forests her ancestors had frolicked in for millions of years began to disappear as the climate changed. The titans that remained in the degrading environment battled viciously for dwindling food supplies. Normally they would have gone into hibernation to ride scarcities in food, but dormant daikaiju proved themselves to be very easy meals for the starving titans in the ever-shrinking tunnel systems. And so most of them remained active to prevent such a grizzly fate, but this meant they burned through their reserves more quickly. Some starved to death, unable to find enough food or radiation in the cold darkness that was coming for them. Others adapted themselves to the cold in ways that gave them a massive advantage, and they soon began outcompeting the titans unable to adapt. She on the other hand took the third option that a select few did as well, to move. She escaped her shrinking habitat to find food elsewhere, to find a place that was amicable for her to live in. She braved through the biting cold of a glaciated desert for hundreds of kilometers, drawn by..._a feeling..._of hers that prompted her to move north. The feeling of...home, was the best she could describe it as. Even when she reached the slightly more welcoming coastline of the continent, that sense kept directing her north. Home was far. Very far. But she wasn't willing to stay. So she set out into the ocean and paddled for days through violent seas and storms, the biting cold of the polar winds, and finally through the great maelstrom that surrounded this paradise. Home. Kong was impressed at the determination she had, commenting how remarkable it was for her to go so far. She half-heartedly accepted the compliment. She had to be determined, she had no choice to be. Those that give up are quickly consumed by the cold...

Throughout that discussion, Kong noticed Jyarumu looked a bit on edge. That seemed understandable considering she did just have a battle with Ebirah, but he couldn't help shake the feeling she felt a bit uneasy around his presence. He inquired if she was feeling fine in his presence. Jyrarumu assured him she was fine. He just...reminded her of someone. Looking at Kong's expression, Jyarumu knew she probably had to elaborate further. She had nothing against Kong himself, not after his benevolence. Her uneasiness is just a side-effect of some past experiences.

Kong then quickly noticed someone else approaching their way. He didn't see them, but his astounding awareness of the nature around him already detected the interloper, from the small tremors they were producing as they walked, to the changes in the very wind itself as their movement displaced the air around them. Kong cocked his head to the right, fully expecting the titan to turn the corner, and while he didn't expect the daikaiju arriving to be hostile, he did internally prepare himself should the encounter prove to be violent. Sure enough, someone did turn the corner, and fortunately for Kong, it wasn't any of his enemies. Just Baragon. The unicersaur greeted Kong with a gurgle and had come to inform him of the state of the Atu Village and its surroundings to the southeast of the mountain. Or at least he was going to do that until his eyes turned to Jyarumu, who was still feasting on a hunk of flesh unaware of his presence just yet. Almost immediately the unicersaur snarled and flared out his ears, finally notifying Jyarumu of his presence. The chondrichthyan was quick to respond as well, flaring out her wings and bellowing a deep roar at the beast. Without a moment more hesitation, Baragon pounced at Jyarumu, jaws open, claws outstretched...only to be caught mid-air by Kong. Looks like internally preparing himself for conflict did indeed come in handy in this situation. The primate was very quick to get between the two battling monsters, throwing Baragon a short distance away while shoving Jyarumu back with his foot as she attempted to charge forward as well. He pounded his chest again, a shockwave silencing the two monsters as their attentions turned to the giant primate before Kong let out a roar that clearly meant one thing.

"Calm. Down."

The king of the Skull Isles then let out an inquiry to both the monsters about their behavior. Baragon was the first to respond with a deep hiss and an aggressive gurgle as he eyed Jyarumu with his apricot eyes. Remember when he said someone stole the Teresudon kill of his? In no time at all, the implication registered with Kong and he turned to Jyarumu to confirm. Glaring over at Baragon, she hissed out in confirmation. Yes, she had stolen the unicersaur's kill back in that frozen hell. Kong was fast to piece the puzzles together from there, now every clearly understanding the source of animosity between the two giants. His train of thought was cut off when Baragon emphasized that was his hard-earned kill that she stole, to which Jyarumu hissed in retaliation. It may have been Baragon's kill, but as far as she was concerned, he could find something else to eat. That carcass was her only option. Baragon retaliated with a hiss of his own, not believing that stealing someone else's food was her only choice for a predator as supposedly ferocious and efficient as herself. Both of them quickly shut up when Kong roared again, the sound echoing across the mountainscape. He had heard enough, from either side. The two monsters grumbled in frustration to themselves as they averted their gaze from the other.

Kong didn't want to take a side in this matter. He's known Baragon for a long time, and while the youngster does get rather aggressive, it's usually not without reason. He's inclined to believe what he has to say on this matter. On the other hand, Jyarumu has clearly been through a lot, and he sympathizes with her greatly already. He's certainly not willing to kick her out or declare her an enemy for something like this, especially in the situation she was in. So, he did the best thing he could think of: Get them to see the other's view. He turned to Jyarumu and explained Baragon's side of things. That kill Baragon made was very important to the unicersaur. The slaying of a Teresudon is considered a right of passage to his species and is a necessary part of their life cycle going forward. He nearly died trying to bring the titan down, but he managed to succeed. To have that success then robbed from him was a blow to his confidence, something he doesn't really have quite a lot of due to being considered a "runt" by his species' standards. That being said, he doesn't blame her for stealing the kill. He is aware such a thing is common amongst predatory animals, another way to fill their belly and let them live to fight another day without risking physical injury. She was desperate and in need of food, there is no shame in her choice. With that, he turned to Baragon and elaborated on that last part to him. Jyarumu was a starving hunter. A refugee from a collapsing ecosystem who had to traverse the barren wastes of a dead continent for the measliest scrap of food. That fresh carcass on the frozen shore was practically the single greatest thing that could have happened to her. She needed that food more than he did. Kong did not deny that Baragon worked hard for his hunt, and his achievement is truly a marvelous one. He simply just wants him to understand that there is no need for long-term animosity against Jyarumu for stealing his prize. The information Kong gave on both of them was enough to give them both pause and something to think about. They both still eyed each other occasionally, but there was far less outward aggression from either. Kong was glad Baragon had somewhat eased his tension towards the newcomer.

Of course, he still have to see how he's going to react with Jyarumu staying on the Isles as her new permanent place of residence.

Baragon hissed in aggressive surprise and defiance at Kong, but a glare from the primate calmed him down. With that handled, Kong rumbled to Jyarumu, asking what kind of place would she prefer to live in. The daikaiju thought to herself for a moment, thinking her requirements through before giving an answer. She needed a place with lots of trees and forest cover, somewhere where she could quickly and quietly ambush prey without needing to chase it down. Her coloration was going to change over time anyway as she adapts to the new environment, but this was going to be a gradual process, so for now she needs a place with lots of covers to hide in and sufficiently dark enough for her coloration not to stand out too much to potential prey. With that information, Kong ran through potential places of settlement Jyarumu could set up shop in that met her requirements. Most of the rainforests on the islands were taken by several overlords. Kamacuras and Kumonga of course had a see-sawing dominion over Solgell Plateau, but there were others as well, beasts that slinked through the darkness like shadow assassins waiting to pounce from nowhere. Kong grimaced as the thought of them came to mind, knowing those certain overlords thanks to a few scars he had from previous encounters with them. That being said, he is aware of places around the islands that have yet to be claimed by anyone currently. After thinking his option over, Kong informed Jyarumu that she could stay in the jungles to the southwest of his mountain home. They would be sufficiently dense enough for her to hide in and with enough visiting prey to sustain her on a regular basis, and if he was being honest, it would be nice to have another pair of eyes inspecting the Graveyard in case those skull demons attempt another invasion of the surface. Jyarumu trilled in acceptance and thanks, though was a bit confused on that skull demon part. But this was suddenly cut off by a hiss from Baragon, turning the attention of both Kong and Jyarumu. The land southwest of the mountain was his territory, specifically being the heart of the burrow system he and his mother dwell in. Kong knew that Baragon was just trying to come up with an excuse not to be around Jyarumu, and simply suggested they could share the territory. It's not like the Rose Dragons spend a lot of time on the surface anyway. Baragon brought up another rejection in response, this time in regards to his mother not being okay with the arrangement, but Kong waved that suggestion off to. Varagorah isn't as aggressive as her son, and all things considered, wouldn't mind Jyarumu's presence. Having run out of excuses, Baragon grumbled to himself with some frustration. Kong informed Jyarumu that Baragon will lead her to the territory to get herself acquainted with the surroundings and see how she likes her new setting. The titan gladly accepted, though a bit uneasy with the prospect of Baragon being the one to guide her there. The unicersaur didn't seem all too thrilled either, but with some prodding from Kong, he eventually sucked up his pride and led Jyarumu down the mountain to the lowlands and jungles below.

Kong oversaw the two daikaiju making their way to their destination, a shrinking set of blue and red moving dots from his vantage point by the time they were a great distance away. By that point, he scaled a few thousand more feet up to his mountain to another resting spot, sheltered in a small cave dug into the mountain. Like the previous one, it was fitted with large leaves, soft moss bedding, and some small bones scattered around from previous kills. He looked out on the horizon as the sun's halo began to bathe more and more of the Isles in its warmth. He took in the view in its entirety, exhaling a tired sigh as he rested himself onto his bedding. It may be morning, but a cathermal creature like him didn't care. The midnight chorus began to taper out and the morning songs of the numerous vocalizing denizens of the Isles begin to fill the air in raucous rapture. But from Kong's altitude height, the calls were soft and soothing, like a mother's lullaby to a tired infant. As the soothing chorus of the island lulled the giant ape, he reminisced of the time before. The time before everything changed for him. The time before the disaster. When he still had some stake left in this world.

With a final great yawn that flashed his massive canines, Kong closed his eyes and went back to sleep...

...

Then a deafening roar was heard, coming from many miles away.

Kong opened his eyes again and groaned.

He's accepted at this point he'll never get any proper sleep for the rest of his life.

---

And here is Part 3!

For those of you patiently waiting for the next entry in the story (which I currently have the drawing done for, I just need to write the description), there's been a slight change in plans at the moment. After a lot of thinking, I've come to the decision that I'm going to do a bit of a retcon/soft reboot of Beiru's introduction into the story.

Specifically, the main stuff changing is I'm gonna be cutting Susano, Utsenae, and Amera out of the story completely, and moving the Mothra children to a later date.

For those of you who like the Thunder Serpent family, don't worry. Arasha and Raija will remain in the story. Originally, Susano, Utsenae, and Raija were conceived as different perspectives on Ghidorah's parenthood, plus I thought it would have been clever to give three children for the _three_-headed dragon, to keep up that theme of trios for the Gilded Emperor.

But

Technically speaking, Susano, Utsenae, Amera, and Raija are all "supporting characters" considering their relation and role in the story. The problem wasn't really writing the story for each of them, I already had a story for Susano and Amera that would be debuting soon, but writing an intricate and well-fleshed out development of character for every single one of them was really going to bloat this section of the overarching narrative quite a bit. So after much thinking, Susano, Utsenae, and Amera are going to be cut out from the story, the main conflict now being mainly between Raija and Arasha. Gives me all the benefits while keeping the conflict concise and condensed.

As for the Mothra Larvae, they aren't being removed so much as they are going to be moved to a later date in the story. They don't actually do much if anything for the majority of this section of the story, so removing them, for now, isn't going to greatly affect things. But when they do come, it's going to be a much bigger impact for reasons I will not disclose due to spoilers. Additionally, other characters will get more attention and spotlight now with the cast being condensed, like the Shisa pack. Mothra will probably be the biggest winner of this update though since it's going to give her a lot more "screen" time and development than before (not saying that she wasn't going to have an adequate amount before the update, but IMO it wasn't exactly the fair amount for her considering she was one of the "main characters").

A minor thing to also mention is that the soft retcon will remove any significant past connection Kong and Godzilla have, and instead I'll be moving that plotline to Godzilla and Mothra. The reason behind Godzilla's mistrust against Kong wasn't revealed yet in the story at this point, so I won't say anything about it, but let's just say it's going to be an exciting one, and it made more sense overall for Mothra to be the one in that plotline than Kong for characterization issues (and again, it's going to give Mothra much more development as well). This won't change much for what has currently been revealed for Kong since he is currently more standalone right now and hasn't had any interactions with the Godzilla-line cast yet, at least until the time finally comes for the fabled crossover...

You'll probably see inbox notifications with revamped descriptions of Mothra, Arasha, Raija, Balkan, and Talaghan, as well as a revised and much more enthralling introduction to Beiru than what is currently put up. Entries that mention or feature the Beiru gods will be tweaked to match the future update, but for now, they'll be posted with a disclaimer saying they are currently under review.

This will be the only time I go back and change for the series, and none of the changes greatly change the trajectory of the narrative going forward. It is a very localized retcon, though it does tweak some character interactions in the future. In short, the story is going to be much improved once I revamp the Beiru introduction.