Chapter 4: Counterattack
The advanced technologies brought by the two alien races, Exif and Bilusaludo, had significantly increased the military power of humanity.
In 2039, using this military might as a backdrop, humanity launched a military operation to reclaim Europe
–Operation Eternal Light.
This was the first offensive that the humans, who had been unilaterally deprived of their living space for half a century, had taken against the Kaiju. It was a counterattack.
In 2034, Godzilla had landed in Europe and wreaked havoc, but then suddenly disappeared into the Arctic Sea. Afterwards, many Kaiju were drawn to the high levels of radiation left behind by the God of Destruction. In the seas, skies, and lands of Europe, which had become the Kaiju’ nest, the human, Exif, and Bilusaludo alliance engaged in fierce battles.
And this chapter recounts the sole victory in the kaiju apocalypse of the 21st century.
TL Note : https://wikizilla.org/wiki/Manda
Manda
July 2039, Dover Strait
Umberto-Morí, Sub-Commander of the Submersible Gōten (at the time)
The battle of Operation Eternal Light was opened at the bottom of the deep sea
-a fight against the threat that had long plagued the safety of Europe’s seas.
Umberto-Morí, a true submariner who had spent most of his military career fighting Kaiju in the deep sea, participated in this battle as the sub-commander of the latest submarine built in Japan.
Having survived a series of arduous battles, his achievements were recognized, and he was appointed as the captain of the interstellar immigrant ship Aratrum.
The military forces mobilized for Operation Eternal Light numbered over 2 million.
To ensure the success of the operation, it was necessary to land the elite troops gathered from the East Coast of America, Britain, and Japan on the European continent and to deliver water, food, and ammunition to them without interruption. To achieve this, the sea dragon had to be annihilated at all costs – the giant Kaiju Manda, who had made the Atlantic Ocean his stronghold.
Manda,
a creature like the Eastern dragon, was one of the largest Kaiju encountered by humanity, with a total length of 150 meters.
Excluding Godzilla, Manda was undoubtedly the greatest threat to the people of Europe. The Atlantic Ocean was effectively dominated by him. Even when Europe was ravaged by Godzilla and many people tried to flee to Britain, Manda suddenly appeared in the Dover Strait and sank many ships.
Of course, since Manda’s first appearance in 2022, numerous extermination operations had been carried out, but all had ended in failure. Manda could dive faster, deeper, and more silently than any submarine humanity possessed. Even with the latest anti-submarine equipment, it was impossible to capture its image. We had to wait for contact with the Exif and Bilusaludo to acquire the equipment to counter Manda.
In May 2039,
a submarine was launched in Japan – the Gōten , the lead ship of the Gōten -class submarines.
With its completion, the preliminary operation of Operation Eternal Light, the Manda extermination operation, was implemented. My experience in several Manda extermination operations was valued, and I was assigned as the sub-commander to board this ship.
It may seem like I’m teaching a fish how to swim by telling a Japanese person this story, but during World War II, it was precisely the submarine commerce warfare that drove Japan into a corner. No matter how powerful a military force may be, if the supply lines are disrupted, they cannot fight. Japan, whose maritime transportation routes were relentlessly attacked and torn apart by the US military, learned the threat of submarines firsthand. That is why, after the war, Japan invested a great deal of resources and time in submarines and countermeasures, and its conventional-powered submarine construction technology was said to be the best in the world. With the technological support from the Exif and Bilusaludo, the three Gōten -class submarines – Gōten , shin’ten, and kyōten (the roaring sky, the quivering sky, and the startling sky) – were ultimately built, and they were the pinnacle of the submarine technology that Japan had cultivated.
The special alloy provided by Bilusaludo enabled diving depths previously impossible, while the underwater speed and stealthiness achieved through caterpillar drive surpassed any submarines built by humanity until then. Moreover, the reconnaissance capability enabled by Exif’s Gematria calculation was akin to submarines suddenly gaining eyesight, instead of solely relying on sonar. Truly, it was a vessel that could be called the strongest submarine ever built by humanity, a submarine battleship dubbed the “undersea battleship.”
A month after the start of the operation, we sortied from Portsmouth upon receiving the report of Manda’s detection.
“Securing control of the Atlantic is essential for the success of Operation Eternal Light, and this cannot be achieved without the annihilation of Manda. Even if it costs us dearly, we will destroy Manda,”
said Captain Jingūji as the operation commenced.
Manda’s threat lay mainly in three points:
Firstly, its overwhelming toughness. It easily withstood direct hits from large torpedoes, and its estimated maximum survival depth was over 8,000 meters. Its giant body covered in steel-like scales was a formidable weapon in itself, having sunk numerous vessels with its body blows.
Next, its agility. It was said that it can even withstand direct torpedo hits, but the real challenge is actually hitting it in the first place. The creature moves with incredible speed despite its massive size. The only way to reliably hit it would be a saturation attack with depth charges, but that would be meaningless if it dives into the deep sea. This beast that swims freely through the ocean is truly the ruler of the seas, and for a conventional submarine relying on sonar to try and ambush it is like a child blindfolded fighting a savage beast.
The ultrasound cannon. It was assumed that Manda also had some kind of sonar-like organ, but this weapon went beyond just transmitting sound – it generated actual physical shockwaves. I can provide the audio data recovered from the submarines that Manda has sunk if needed. Suddenly, an eerie high-pitched noise would fill the ship, everything would be enveloped in vibration, the crew would scream in agony clutching their heads, and then in the next instant, there would be a massive explosion as the vessel was torn apart… The crew always lived in fear of when that sound might reach their own ship.
But surely with Gōten ‘s capabilities, there must be a way to contend with Manda.
We had a few advantages on our side. First, our detection capabilities. With the latest passive sonar, hydrophones, and Exif’s Gematria computations, we were able to quickly and accurately track Manda’s position as it swam leisurely through the Atlantic.
We stealthily approached Manda, hiding beneath the thermocline.
“Fire the active sonar.”
Following the order from Commander Jinguji, the active sonar was launched. For Manda, it must have felt like a sudden slap in the face. It violently turned and charged towards us.
“180 degree turn, bearing 040.”
Gōten pretended to frantically flee… luring Manda in. We had plenty of speed. Gōten ‘s catalytic propulsion easily outpaced Manda in underwater velocity. We carefully guided Manda, making sure to stay out of range of its ultrasound cannon.
The battlefield that Commander Jinguji chose was the Dover Strait. Manda’s maximum diving depth far exceeded Gōten ‘s. We needed to lure it all the way to the continental shelf to ensure we didn’t lose it to the deep sea.
“Start flooding tubes 1 through 4 in the rear torpedo launchers.”
The captain’s order signaled the end of the game of cat and mouse.
“Open tubes 1 through 4, fire the torpedoes, then reverse course. Charge Manda.”
Two torpedoes were launched from Gōten ‘s rear. These were specially developed for Gōten , possessing maneuverability far exceeding conventional torpedoes – essentially underwater combat drones. As the two torpedoes struck Manda, Gōten reversed and faced the beast head-on. Manda closed the distance, unleashing its sound hammer – the ultrasound cannon – but the captain’s response was a simple “Helm, evade.” Gōten ‘s agility easily dodged the invisible shockwaves.
The traditional submarine warfare of quietly stalking the enemy for days on the dark seafloor was replaced by the intensity of an aerial dogfight underwater. Manda blasted its sound cannon, and we dodged while landing torpedo strikes.
This was a completely new style of submarine combat, and Gōten ‘s first real battle, but the crew under Commander Jinguji’s command performed admirably. Jinguji’s deep familiarity with Gōten , having been involved in the design from the beginning, was certainly a major factor.
Yet even with their efforts, the battle remained at a stalemate. Manda’s attacks couldn’t hit us, but our torpedoes weren’t enough to defeat it.
“Manda is closing in.”
Irritated, Manda was reducing the distance to Gōten .
“Captain, shall we retreat?”
A head-on collision would put us at a disadvantage. But instead, Jinguji ordered Gōten to close the distance with Manda. Gōten and Manda collided head-on, and violent shaking rocked the interior.
“It seems to be trying to crush this ship!”
Manda had wrapped its massive body around Gōten . Alarms blared, the hull creaked in an unpleasant way, and rapid flooding reports came in.
But Jinguji remained calm.
“Release the coolant. Open the vents. Emergency dive.”
As the catalytic propulsion coolant was vented outside, the captain ordered an emergency dive. The coolant froze the surrounding seawater, trapping Gōten and Manda in ice as they slowly sank to the seafloor.
Could it be that the captain truly intended to impale Gōten on Manda and encase them both in ice?
No, that couldn’t be. If that were the case, I wouldn’t be here now.
The captain’s aim was to immobilize Manda. Even if the enemy had the most formidable armor, if it couldn’t move, then superior firepower could be brought to bear.
“Issue the attack order to the special submarine – Satsuma.”
And it was already prepared with the first move.
The first torpedo fired was a decoy to hide the real target. They had been secretly holding their breath until the right moment came. The seabed of the Dover Strait was full of many ships sunk by none other than Manda. There was no shortage of places to hide.
The special submarine – Satsuma. As the name suggests, it is a small submarine. Or you could call it a powered underwater suit. Four of them rushed toward Manda, frozen in place and unable to move, and struck with their deadly spears. The spearheads had D-03 rock-drilling warheads, and inside was liquid nitrogen. The drill-like warheads crushed Manda’s thick scales, and then pumped the cryogenic liquid into its body. The plan was to freeze it from the inside.
Manda’s agonized cries echoed through the ship’s interior… along with that familiar sound, the nightmare-inducing sound of Manda’s sonic cannon. At least they would take Manda down with them. Whether the liquid nitrogen would stop Manda’s heart first or if Manda would explode first, there was nothing left to do but pray. While the ship’s interior was shaking, only Captain Jinguji remained calm without so much as a furrowed brow. The sound gradually became shriller, and soon the ship began to vibrate, and then…
Suddenly, it stopped. Or at least, it felt like it had stopped. But there was a ringing sound lingering in their ears. Had the sound stopped? Or hadn’t it? Was Manda dead? Or was the iron fist of that sound about to strike their ship as well?
No one could fully trust their own senses.
Amidst the confusion, Captain Jinguji spoke.
“Gentlemen, well done. We have achieved victory.”
Instantly, the crew members unleashed their emotions.
For a submarine, where silence was the ultimate weapon, this was an absolute taboo, but even I could not hold back my feelings this time.
Before I knew it, I, an Italian-born, was shouting “Banzai, Banzai!” alongside the Japanese.
Manda, who had been ravaging Europe for so long, had been annihilated, and the preparations for Operation Eternal Light were finally complete.
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