Varan destroyed village

Suddenly, everyone was thrown forward as Tony slammed on the brakes. The Land Rover bounced off a huge stone in the road, then skidded to one side in the loose dirt. Finally, it came to a shuddering halt. As the cloud of dry dust settled around them, the stunned news team peered through the windshield.

At a bend in the road ahead, the stone and adobe remains of a crushed building blocked the road. On the opposite side, a wall remained standing - though it leaned precariously against a splintered tree.

Linda popped open the door and stepped out. She gazed past the ruins up the road to a huge stone Wall in the distance.

No, not a wall, she remembered. That's the stone circle. Mike appeared at her side. "What do you think?" he whispered.

"I think -" But Linda was interrupted by a blast of cool, sweet air that swept down through the center of the ruined village.

"Do you smell that?" Tony hissed.

"Yeah," Mike nodded. "Pure oxygen..."

"It's up there," Pete whispered. "Varan is up there. I know it."

"What do we do?" Tony asked.

It was Robin who replied in a firm voice. "We're reporters, aren't we? What do you think we're going to do? We're going to go up there and film a report."

"Out of the mouths of babes," Linda muttered.

Together, the INN news team returned to the vehicle and collected their equipment. Linda glanced at the wall again and snatched up the lighter of the two cameras. She figured she'd be doing some climbing. When they were all ready, the group trudged up the road toward the ruined village. As they walked through the debris-laden streets, it was apparent that Tehetepec was deserted.

The people must have fled, Linda thought as she scanned the ruins. There was hardly a wall left standing in the tiny village. Even the stone well was broken and filled with debris.


Godzilla 2000, Chapter 13