Preface Note – This is a work of fiction; blame everything on ChatGPT Plus, version 4; Grammarly, which I highly recommend, made over 9 suggested changes and other corrections, but these were not enacted.  Royalty-Free image from my Envato Elements Subscription.

by Pierre Lefevre

July 24, 2023

As dawn breaks over the Atlantic Ocean, the French Navy is engaged in a desperate hunt, a marine manhunt unlike any other in history. The quarry is not a rogue submarine or a terrorist vessel, but a creature of myth and legend – the Leviathan. The sea monster, responsible for the demise of the French submarine La Sirene and the merchant vessel Le Navigateur, continues to elude even the most advanced naval weaponry.

The French Navy unveiled and utilized a prototype weapon, developed from salvaged alien technology from the Falklands conflict. According to Cmdr. Antoine Duval, the weapon’s deployment showed promising results. “We managed to land a hit. We saw the creature react, but the Leviathan retreated into the depths before we could press the attack.”

Historian Dr. Danielle Moreau suggests that the Leviathan is a throwback to a time when humanity feared the sea’s unknown depths. “In ancient times, Leviathan represented the unknowable and untameable chaos of the deep. Its reappearance now, in a time of global chaos and uncertainty, is almost poetic.”

Despite the commendable efforts of the French Navy, the question remains: Can mankind truly hope to battle such an immense and elusive adversary?

Satellite images reveal the sheer scale of the beast, dwarfing even the largest naval vessels. Eye-witness accounts from sailors speak of the terror inspired by the Leviathan. Lt. Pierre Giraud, a sailor aboard the destroyer Le Triomphant, recounts, “It was like nothing we’ve ever seen, a mountain rising from the sea. Its roar… it was primal, a sound that reaches into your soul and fills you with dread.”

The French government remains resolute in the face of this maritime terror. In an official statement, Adm. Luc Besson of the French Navy affirmed, “We will not relent in our pursuit of this creature. The safety of our waters and our people is paramount. We will do whatever it takes.”

While the prototype weapon, a silver lining in the grim saga of humanity’s conflict with the unknown, may give the French Navy a fighting chance against the Leviathan, one cannot help but wonder at the price we pay for our presumption. As we weaponize the tools of our extraterrestrial visitors, are we not merely replacing one unknown with another?

As we push forward into uncharted waters, one thing remains clear: our world is changing, perhaps irrevocably, and we must adapt to survive. Our war is no longer with each other, but with the unknown. In the face of alien invasions, demonic entities, and now sea monsters of legend, humanity’s endurance is being tested like never before. The age of myth has returned, and with it comes a primal challenge to our place on this Earth. One thing is certain; this will be a long and grueling battle, and our survival is not guaranteed.