"What's going on?" Director Sawai turned back, noticing something unusual.
"You should go first," Captain Megumi replied firmly. She knew some secrets should never be revealed to outsiders—even someone like Director Sawai.
"But—" Sawai still hesitated, clearly worried about the situation.
"I beg you!" Megumi bent slightly, lowering herself in a rare plea.
"…Alright."
Director Sawai had never once seen Megumi like this before. Though uneasy, he respected her request and left without pressing further.
Once he was gone, Megumi stepped closer to Daigo, speaking in a quiet, steady tone:
"When I first saw Ultraman, I thought I was looking at God Himself… that He could guide humanity to the right path. But later, I realized the truth. Ultraman is light—but also human."
Her gaze shifted from Daigo to Yu Zhou.
"You mean… Advisor Yu Zhou is also…" Rena looked at him in shock.
Yu Zhou only gave her a calm nod, as if it were nothing worth hiding.
Daigo, however, looked conflicted. He hadn't expected his captain to have already uncovered his secret.
"That's why," Megumi continued, "neither of you are obligated to face an enemy that can't be defeated."
"Can't be defeated…" Daigo muttered, then slowly shook his head. "I can't accept that."
"Captain. Rena." Yu Zhou finally spoke, "Daigo isn't going there to win. He'll just hold back the darkness for now. I'll go find reinforcements so we can face Gatanozoa together."
"But Daigo going alone is far too dangerous!" Rena protested, her voice trembling. The enemy wasn't just any monster—it was the very god of evil that had destroyed the ancient civilization.
"Don't worry." Yu Zhou's voice softened. "Once I bring help, we'll rush to support him. We will win."
"Yes…" Megumi exhaled, then encouraged Daigo. "Daigo, fight not as a god, but as a human."
Yu Zhou added one last reminder:
"Don't waste your strength on a finishing move. Just stall for time. Alone, you can't defeat it."
"…Understood." Daigo gave a firm nod.
"Let's go. We can't delay." Yu Zhou motioned to Rena and Megumi.
Though Rena still worried deeply, Yu Zhou's words reassured her. If he was going to find allies, then maybe Daigo wouldn't be alone in this fight. Together, the three of them rushed out of the darkening command hall toward the Artdesis.
Meanwhile, Daigo remained. Pulling out the Spark Lens, he pressed the trigger in a familiar motion.
A flash of crystalline light pierced the black fog engulfing the TPC base. In the next instant, a shining figure soared from the headquarters into the skies, heading straight for the South Pacific.
Aboard the Artdesis
Director Sawai frowned when only Megumi, Rena, and Yu Zhou returned. He wanted to ask about Daigo, but remembering Megumi's plea, he kept silent.
"Rena, to your station—quick!" Captain Munakata barked, clapping her shoulder.
"Yes, sir!" Rena hurried to the pilot's seat, hands firm on the controls.
Behind her, Megumi and Yu Zhou stood in silence, watching her face clouded with worry.
"…So, the captain knew. And even more than I did," Rena whispered, glancing briefly at Yu Zhou.
"Magus Drive fully charged!" Ye Rui reported from the systems panel.
"Artdesis, launch!" Rena declared, guiding the ship skyward.
The Artdesis left the base, engines blazing.
"Wait—where's Daigo?" Shinjo suddenly asked, looking around.
"Yeah, where is he?" Horii echoed.
Unlike in the original timeline, Shinjo and Horii hadn't been sent to investigate R'lyeh's ruins, so both were aboard the ship.
"…Daigo stayed behind in the cargo hold to organize the evacuees," Megumi replied without hesitation. "It's packed full down there."
"Oh. I see…" Both Shinjo and Horii nodded, satisfied.
R'lyeh Ruins, South Pacific
Tiga landed heavily upon the ruins, seawater surging around his knees, waves battering his towering frame.
Before him loomed Gatanozoa—the colossal, armor-clad beast exhaling endless black fog into the sky.
Tiga raised his hand and fired a beam of energy. The blast struck Gatanozoa's thick shell with a flash of sparks—but when the glow faded, there wasn't even a scorch mark.
The monster's blood-red eyes glowed. It opened its cavernous jaws, bellowing a sound like a mix of elephant's cry and ox's roar.
Tiga charged forward without fear, fists and kicks slamming against the armored hide. But his blows barely registered—Gatanozoa's defense was absolute.
The beast shrieked again, shrouding Tiga in its suffocating black mist. Sparks burst across Tiga's body as though struck by lightning, forcing him back in pain.
From the ocean depths, a massive pincer surged up and smashed into Tiga's shoulder, knocking him down into the waves.
Tiga rose again, drenched but unyielding, squaring his stance. Yet more waves churned violently behind him—another threat approaching fast.
He turned just in time to grab a thrashing tentacle lashing at him. Tiga strained to tear it apart, but the limb was too tough, resisting his full strength.
Then another tentacle whipped around his ankle, yanking hard. With a splash, Tiga lost balance and toppled into the sea.
Through the crashing waves, only the blue glow of his Color Timer shone faintly—humanity's last beacon in the darkness.
Inside the Artdesis
The command deck was heavy with silence, weighed down by uncertainty.
"Signal restored!" Ye Rui suddenly shouted with joy. "Surface-wave simulcast communications are working! Patching visual feed now!"
The main screen lit up.
Gatanozoa's massive body loomed in the stormy ocean, unleashing roars that shook the sea itself.
But before it, rising once more from the waves, stood Tiga Ultraman—his silver, red, and purple armor gleaming, his pearl-white eyes shining, and the blue gem on his chest glowing defiantly.
"Diga!!" Munakata cried out, relief washing over him.
The entire crew's spirits lifted. Time and again, Ultraman had appeared in humanity's darkest hours, standing tall against impossible odds. To them, Tiga was no less than a guardian deity.
On the screen, Tiga squared off against the god of darkness once more.
"Daigo… hold on," Yu Zhou whispered under his breath.
If only Kirino had finished his mission. If only the reinforcements would arrive soon. Until then, Daigo would have to stand alone.
Meanwhile, in the Underground Shelter
The refugees huddled together, eyes fixed on the flickering transmission. They too watched the impossible battle unfold.
"It's useless… no one can defeat that thing…" a man muttered, despair drowning his voice.
For many, Gatanozoa's colossal form was overwhelming, beyond what they believed even a giant of light could overcome.
This endless darkness felt like the end of the world itself.