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Holding the kaiju that was still awake and struggling, Henry flew back to the Pentagon (GDA headquarters). While on his way, Henry activated his communicator and called Cecil.
" Cecil, I'm on my way back, and I'm bringing the kaiju alive. Where do you want me to drop it off?"
Henry already knew why Cecil wanted the kaiju alive. It was probably for experiments to create some kind of powerful biological weapon capable of handling threats, but he thought it was better to play innocent, at least for now.
"Great, I've already instructed my agents to wait for you at the entrance."
"Alright, do you have a secure place to keep this thing?"
"Yes, it won't be a problem. I've prepared a secure location inside a base where it won't escape."
One of the GDA's bases had a giant cell designed specifically for monsters like this, reinforced with thick layers of titanium.
Henry arrived above the Pentagon (GDA). The GDA soldiers were below, equipped with special weapons and Kevlar armor. There were also large machines designed to trap and transport monsters like this one, along with heavy-duty technological shackles to immobilize large creatures and equipment to move those shackles.
Henry landed at the entrance, surrounded by the soldiers. The kaiju only had one arm left and was still struggling. Henry threw the kaiju to the ground and stepped on its back, holding it down. He grabbed its remaining arm. The soldiers appeared and, with some difficulty, restrained the creature, using a transport machine to secure a thick titanium collar around its neck. They shackled the kaiju's legs together with manacles. Once the kaiju was completely immobilized, the soldiers administered a strong sedative that made it fall asleep. Then, massive vehicles appeared to transport it to another base, accompanied by several cars providing an escort.
Cecil and Donald showed up, walking toward him. Cecil had a satisfied look on his face, while Donald wore his usual expression.
"You did a good job. Things might have gone worse if you hadn't shown up."
"It's nothing. What about the others?"
"The others stayed to help the civilians. Something else came up, and I sent them. You don't need to worry about going. It's not a big deal, and they can handle it on their own."
"Great, that's a relief..."
Henry and Cecil were talking when some people descended from the sky and landed between them.
One of them was Martian Man. He was a Martian. His head was shaped like a long rectangle, naturally tall. His eyes were pure yellow.
The other was The Immortal. He was tall, with light skin, a beard on his face, and a large yellow suit with blue and white stripes.
The Immortal approached Henry to speak with him.
"I heard about what you did. Good job, kid." He was pretty intimidating. He had lived for many years and seemed very wise, so being praised by someone like him made Henry a little shy.
"It's nothing... haha." Henry let out a weird laugh and acted a bit childish.
Martian Man also joined them. He had an unusual appearance, but of all the Guardians, he seemed to be the kindest.
"What do you think about joining us? You seem like a good person, trustworthy!"
"I'm not sure yet... But maybe one day."
Aquarus and Green Ghost also joined them at some point.
Henry chatted with each Guardian. They all had different personalities, but they were all nice to him. Everyone was having a good time when another person descended from the sky. It was a man. He had light skin, blue eyes, and neatly trimmed black hair. As is Viltrumite tradition, Nolan had a mustache. Despite being thousands of years old, Nolan appeared to be in his mid-thirties, with a few wrinkles on his face and graying on the lower half of his hair. He had an imposing presence, with a well-built and powerful physique, notable for his wide body structure.
He was wearing a full-body suit, with the upper part adorned in white, and the lower part was red. The suit had a prominent crimson highlight that extended to his core, where a scarlet "O" symbol stood out, representing the individual, though in reality, it symbolized his people, as the Viltrumite insignia has a similar design.
He descended and landed between them. All the Guardians were there, except for Holly, Red Rush, and Darkwing.
Henry felt the atmosphere change. Nolan's presence shifted the previously "calm" environment to one that was "tense." Nolan emanated an aura of "trouble." When he landed between them, Henry could hear, with his enhanced hearing, that everyone's hearts began to race faster.
(Tun-dum, tun-dum)
Even though they were friends, Henry noticed that not even the Guardians trusted him completely. After all, he was an incredibly powerful alien. Unlike him, Henry didn't have disdain for humans—his aura was more peaceful.
He approached Nolan. Nolan had a strange look on his face, as if he were forcing a friendly smile, but it came across as more threatening.
Henry tensed up.
"Who's the new kid, Cecil? You didn't tell me anything about him."
"The kid just showed up recently. I didn't know him until now. You know as much as I do."
"Really?" Nolan asked, his face showing a dominant expression.
"Yeah," Cecil answered frankly.
"I see."
Henry could feel the tension in Cecil, and in everyone. Henry didn't know Nolan, but he could tell Nolan wasn't happy to see him. However, when Cecil said he didn't know him, Nolan seemed to calm down a bit.
He was probably upset about a potential threat to his plans. Besides the Guardians, there was now another person he had to deal with. Henry didn't know if Nolan knew about Kryptonians. Maybe he thought he was a Viltrumite?
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Nolan extended his hand for a handshake.
"The pleasure's mine. I'm a big fan."
"Really? That's great. I'm happy to hear that," Nolan said, though he didn't seem pleased.
Henry noticed that Nolan gripped his hand firmly as a show of dominance. It was the strongest hand he'd ever encountered, but Henry didn't let it slide. He pushed back with some strength of his own.
Their handshake turned into a silent battle of strength, but it didn't last long before they released each other.
The Immortal and the other Guardians who had arrived began talking to Cecil about the details of the mission they had just completed.
"The mission went smoothly, no major problems. We handled it easily. What about the others?"
Cecil talked to the other Guardians outside the GDA.
Cecil was a shrewd person. He never trusted Nolan 100%, and he noticed the tension between the two. However, he didn't mention it or comment on it. While they were having their silent battle, he was more focused on creating a weapon that could take both of them down at once.
Henry went to say goodbye to the Guardians. Finally, he went to Cecil.
"I have to go. I've got things to do."
"Alright. You did great today. Don't forget to stay in touch."
"Sure."
Henry flew off. He was missing home and wanted to rest for a while.
When Henry left, the Guardians began praising him. They'd all heard about his performance and liked him a lot—except for one person: Omni-Man. After Henry left, Omni-Man narrowed his eyes and glared at him with fury, wanting to tear him apart.
A few days earlier, Henry had told his aunt Holly everything he knew about the Viltrumites and warned her that Nolan was dangerous and shouldn't be trusted. Henry was already planning to tell the Guardians about Nolan's true intentions, but he would wait a bit longer until they trusted him more. Then, he would tell them everything he knew about the Viltrumites. It was too dangerous to leave them with Nolan. He'd tell Cecil and find a way to deal with him—just not right now.
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