The Third Convergence Day

Neo-Tokyo

Neo Tokyo, Japan

2053 A.D

Patrick Wittman stood in the center of the museum, his eyes fixed on

the display in front of him: Covered by a protective wall of glass, was a fourteen-foot-wide,

twenty-foot-tall, ten-foot-thick shard of metal, a magnesium alloy, to be exact. It was a remnant of the earth's greatest technological achievement, and its greatest defender, Totalus. It had been found about two-hundred meters off the coast of northern Guam, and as far as the world knew, it was the largest piece of Totalus left, the rest having been destroyed in nuclear fire, the largest explosion the earth had seen since the end of the cretaceous period. Patrick turned his head and looked down one of the museum's grand halls, and saw similar pieces adorning the walls, sitting atop marble pedestals, and hanging from the ceiling by thick metal cables, relics from the first and second convergence events. It had been twenty years since the first convergence event, when fourteen Ultra-Fauna and two defense units rampaged across the planet. A week later, and after sixteen dead titans, fifteen destroyed cities, and an unexpected shuffling of the world's tallest mountain list, not to mention one-hundred-and-twenty-five-million casualties worldwide, the world was finally able to let out a collective sigh of relief. Of course, the global economy was in ruins, millions more would suffer through famine, and the world would now have to face an unprecedented migrant crisis, but they had survived.

Ten years later, the second convergence event had done much more of the same, destroyed cities, dead Ultra-Fauna, millions of deaths, and caused trillions of dollars' worth of damages, it was a kick to the ribs while humanity was still lying on its face. Only now, twenty

years since Zarathus had first awoken at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, was the world finally recovering, finally starting to move on.

Patrick let out a whistle as he stared up at the shard; he knew Totalus had been big, but seeing that just a fragment of him, a miniscule piece of shrapnel, was a centerpiece of the international convergence museum was an enlightening experience. Looking up at the shard made him feel like a kid again. When he was young, he used to be an Ultra-Fauna kid, he knew all their names, all their heights and weights, he must have annoyed his parents so much with all of the trivia facts. He would spew at them about Kuiru or Scorn Rah. He could remember how he had been glued to the screen of his TV during the first event, and how he had spent hours upon hours looking up the scarce footage of the titanic clashes that existed on YouTube and whatever

forums would allow that kind of content. That all changed when his grandfather died. That was why he was here now actually.

General Karlson Richard Reeds, one of the leading members of the now defunct Ultra-Fauna Defense Division, had been a leading advisor to the United States, and later the United Nations, during the first convergence event. It wasn't unreasonable to say that he was responsible

for saving millions of lives during the worst of the event, and gave his life doing so. Young Patrick never really thought of it that way, though. As far as he cared, his grandpa was dead, all because of these ungodly things. His interest in Ultra-Fauna died that day.

The museum had unveiled a new exhibit that day, honoring the men and women of the UFDD for their sacrifices during the events, with a corner of it dedicated entirely to his grandfather; he and his family had been personally invited by the museum to attend its opening. It was a touching reception, and Patrick had teared up a bit when they unveiled a lifesize bronze statue of his grandfather. Perhaps that was the real reason he was enjoying his time at the museum; it did make him feel nostalgic for a time before the world went to hell.

A tug on Patrick's shirt broke his train of thought, and he turned and looked down at his daughter, who smiled up at him enthusiastically. "Daddy! Daddy!" she yelled happily, "Look