… I bet you thought this was dead! But, just like Godzilla himself, he can sleep for a long time before becoming active again. This story will be finished.

Special thanks to the reviewers from the previous chapter: x_uve, TheJokerMan, Cimar-WildeHopps

And, of course, special thanks to the beta readers: Metro (Dancou-Maryuu)

Let's get on with the show!

Titan Science

Cliffside Asylum

Doctor Madge Honey Badger was looking at the most interesting thing in her career – even more so than trying to figure out why predators were going savage. It didn't stop her from being frustrated the same way, though.

The creature that had rampaged through Zootopia had left behind biological elements that were proving to be a much more complicated thing to work out than she had anticipated.

It was true that Dr. Badger had failed to uncover the reason that predators were going savage, but since being released from prison, she had dedicated time to studying the biologically unknown. She'd vowed not to be tricked by something like that ever again.

Studying the biomatter given to her was sailing her close to that edge. She had never seen anything like it before. She had examined the genetic coding of the savage predators, hoping to find a common link (even though she had to acknowledge now that there was none), but this? The genetic coding was unlike anything she had ever seen before.

How was she supposed to figure out what this thing was, much less find a way to stop it?

Unorthodox times meant unorthodox measures, and Dr. Badger had asked for research into mutations caused by radiation. One such research paper, written by a Hinodese zoologist named Goro Maki, proved a fascinating read. It posited the theory that it was likely that an ancient, unidentified breed of sea reptile had found itself surrounded with radioactivity and had adapted in order to withstand and consume it as a food source.

He had called the creature Godzilla in English and the name Gojira in Hinodese. Unlike the creature Monarch had been tracking, which also shared the name Gojira, the one Maki had been studying was referred to as 'God Incarnate'. For the sake of the research, Maki's Godzilla had been named 'Shin Godzilla' – or 'New Godzilla' – by Monarch.

Dr. Badger had come to the conclusion, based on what she knew, that the creature was likely sustained by nuclear fission, though this was a conclusion that wasn't exactly unknown: Lionheart himself had deduced that the creature had been drawn to Zootopia by the nuclear reactor powering the Climate Wall.

The other creature, the Old Godzilla, was just as interesting, but it had not left behind any biomatter to study. Monarch had given her access to files that suggested that it had evolved from an ancient Permian-era super-predator that fed on radiation, and that its favoured source was located deep at the bottom of the ocean, where no submarine could go without being crushed by the pressure. The creature must have evolved an incredibly resilient skin and skeleton in order to survive that pressure.

It would have been fascinating to study properly. Unfortunately, the situation made the thought an impossibility, and there was no biological material from that creature to study. Madge would have to settle for the observational notes from Monarch. The only creature that she had biomatter from was Shin Godzilla.

Even the material that Dr. Badger was studying acted as though it were still a part of the whole. Imagine her shock when she went back to study the material, only to find that it had grown an eye! A freezing agent had to be applied in order to stop it from mutating further, but the discovery provided an interesting, yet terrifying possibility: potentially, any biological matter taken from the creature could mutate into an entirely new creature.

Video taken from the media appeared to show that Shin Godzilla also gave off an immense amount of heat after a major mutation. She guessed that its returning to the ocean wasn't just because of the arrival of the much larger alpha Godzilla – it was to cool itself down. The heat radiated from its dorsal plates, and Dr. Badger assumed that, much like certain dinosaurs like the Stegosaurus, the dorsal plates served as part of a thermoregulatory system.

The unfortunate conclusion that Dr. Badger had come to, based on her observations, was that they were unlikely to be able to kill Shin Godzilla, and that the next time it came ashore, it would very likely have adapted to do so without needing to return to the ocean. Even the freezing agent that had been applied to this relatively small sample of the creature's biomatter couldn't be guaranteed to work.

"… what did you just say?" Lionheart said. He had decided to pay a visit to Cliffside in order to check in on Dr. Badger's progress in finding a way of pacifying the creature. Mallory, and Doctors Ishiro Serizawa, Sora Kōsetsu and Jack Hopps, had joined him.

"The way in which the creature adapts would make it very difficult to stop it, and that's the best-case scenario," Dr. Badger repeated.

"I put you in here to figure out a way to kill this thing before it comes back and causes more damage," Lionheart growled. "Need I remind you the last time you gave up half-way through?"

The jab at Dr. Badger's inability to find the cause of the savagery in predators was something she'd expected.

"Nature has a balance," Serizawa interjected.

"What are you suggesting?" Lionheart turned to him.

"If we cannot find a way to stop Shin Gojira ourselves, then we must put our faith in something that can," Serizawa answered. "Balance must be achieved. Gojira is the key to restore that balance."

"Are you saying we should… what? Let them fight?" Lionheart crossed his arms.

"Unless you happen to have an anti-Titan weapon lying around, have you got a better suggestion?" Jack raised an eyebrow.

"Doctor Hopps is correct that conventional weaponry is likely to prove ineffective," Mallory stated.

"The only non-conventional weapon left is a nuclear weapon, and I will not allow one anywhere near this city," Lionheart growled.

"Didn't work last time anyway," Jack added.

"Perhaps… we can use it as bait to lure them out before detonating it," Dr. Badger suggested. All eyes turned on her.

"Killing Gojira would be a mistake," Sora remarked.

"As already discussed, nuclear weapons failed to kill Gojira in 1954, and it was far smaller than it is now," Serizawa added.

"The explosion might put Godzilla into a state of hibernation," Dr. Badger countered. "And we can guess that Shin Godzilla might not be able to withstand the same explosion. It's not a creature that has adapted to the same environments over eons as Godzilla has."

"She has a point," Jack nodded.

"I…" Lionheart began, unsure of how to respond.

"It's the only plan that we have," Dr. Badger said. "Lure them both out with a nuclear warhead, detonate it in the hopes it kills Shin Godzilla and forces Old Godzilla into hibernation. What other choice do we have? Let them fight in the city? You might as well order a nuclear strike on Zootopia itself."

"Are there no alternatives?" Lionheart asked. "What about the freezing agent you mentioned?"

"It worked on a small amount of the creature's biomatter, but have you got any idea how much of that freezing agent would be needed to stop a creature of that size?" Dr. Badger responded. "Not to mention you would need to find a reliable method of delivery. Unless you happen to have ten-foot syringes lying around, that's not going to be possible or practical."

Lionheart put a paw on his head.

"Fine…" Lionheart conceded. "I'll… need to make some phone calls. And… in case this doesn't work, I'll need to have civilians evacuated."

Lionheart's pocket vibrated and he pulled his cell phone from it.

"Mayor Lionheart," Lionheart answered. He frowned as he listened to the mammal calling, but that frown was soon replaced by a look of utter shock. He hung up and put the phone back in his pocket.

"One of them has been spotted in the Zootopian Sea, six miles off the coast," Lionheart announced.

Zootopian Sea

Acting purely on instinct and moving at an almost zombie-like pace, Shin Godzilla had been drawn back towards Zootopia. As the sea floor rose towards the water's surface, Shin Godzilla was able to stand, and it could amble towards its goal.

Within the hour, its head had surfaced above water, its target in sight.

Zootopia News Network

"Good afternoon, citizens of Zootopia. I'm Fabienne Growley with a public emergency broadcast. Mayor Lionheart has issued an evacuation order for the citizens of Zootopia. The ZPD will assist in evacuating the city as the creature known as Shin Godzilla has surfaced in the Zootopian Sea and is coming ashore. Please gather your essential belongings as quickly as possible and make your way to the nearest ZPD evacuation point, which will be sent via the Public Alert System to all Zootopia's citizens' cell phones."

Excerpt from 'Gojira (呉爾羅)/Godzilla – Theoretical Discovery Of Species On Ocean Floor'

Written by Doctor Goro Maki

'The creature, discovered deep within the Pawcific Ocean, was found among the wreckage of what appears to be nuclear waste containers. Under normal circumstances, any creature exposed to such high amounts of radiation would die, most likely in excruciating fashion. However, the creature has not only survived being surrounded with nuclear waste, but has somehow mutated to feed on it.

It is not known exactly what kind of creature Gojira was prior to its mutation, though cursory analysis seems to link it to a long-extinct marine predator dating back to the Permian era. If the creature continues to dwell in this environment, mutations triggered by the radiation could lead to the creature 'evolving' – or, more accurately, the creature could theoretically undergo a form of metamorphosis that sees it become something new altogether. Theoretically, if exposed to radioactive material long enough, it could rapidly undergo this process based on the conditions it finds itself in.'

And that's a wrap on this chapter!

Fun fact – Godzilla's Japanese name, Gojira, name is usually written in katakana (ゴジラ) but in Shin Godzilla, within the film itself, Goro Maki wrote Godzilla using ateji (呉爾羅).