Written and Illustrated by James Harren
Published by Image Comics
Humanity is in the terrifying grip of a kaiju virus.
The virus jumps from host to host with no rhyme or reason. Anyone can be infected and become a violent, grotesque monster.
There is no cure.
Only elimination.
Enter Jason.
Jason never asked for any of this. Not a cosmic visitation. Not the ability to see who is carrying this insidious virus. Not the ability to trigger the virus with his presence. Not the responsibility to fight the monsters it spawns.
He never asked to be an Ultramega.
Nor did the two other Ultramega, Stephen and Ern.
Stephen was just a kid when these powers were thrust on him. Ern? Well, no one knew much about Ern when all of this started, and they know even less now.
Stephen and Ern have retired, after a fashion. Stephen threw himself into robotics research and enjoying the money that research generated. Ern wandered through the city, broken by what the power had done to him, eventually passing out of society completely.
This leaves Jason, and only Jason, fighting the kaiju.
He’s spent at least a decade fighting these monsters. Kaiju don’t take days off. It’s been years since Jason has had one himself. At this point in his life, he is a tired man who just wants to buy a birthday present for his son after a long day. He wants to go home to eat some cake to celebrate.
Too bad that’s not the way that this works.
A particularly traumatizing encounter propels Jason towards a past he thought he’d safely tucked away. There aren’t any presents or cake here. Only guilt and regret. And, as it turns out, a choice that endangers the entire city. Sometimes, what seems like compassion comes with consequences.
In a rare stroke of luck, Jason encounters Stephen and Ern downtown. He explains to them what they are about to face. The monster about to bear down on the city is unlike anything they have faced before. This one is older, more powerful, and has a personal vendetta. The monster is going to demand everything that all three Ultramega can throw at it. It still won’t be enough.
The aftermath rattles what is left of society. Officials double down on efforts to build guardians from metal and wire rather than relying on flesh and blood. Anyone who may be carrying the virus is “relocated” to destroyed slums for the “safety” of all. The future is dark.
And yet, there may still be a glimmer of hope.
We’ll have to see what comes of it as the story continues.
