Dragon Ball AU;
Deus ex Machina

Deus Ex Machina; Latin
'God in the machine'

Chapter One – My master

"Come on, sensei! I know I hit hard now but that couldn't have done you in... Right?" A dark skinned man with a Mohawk shouted out into the wasteland. To an ordinary man, the scene would look incredible. The man was floating in midair as if it took no effort, wearing a torn up orange training Gi. The land below him had always been a wasteland of dry arid rock and nowadays it was the same but on fire and destroyed. To a normal man, it looked like a warzone where the Gods themselves fought. To Uub Nijam and the man he called his sensei this was just the result of a slightly intense training session.

Uub's eyes narrowed as he twisted his body round, catching a powerful blow from the man he called sensei. A tall man with an ever grinning face and kind black eyes. His black hair was wild and spiky, shaped like the leaves of a palm tree or the leaves of a pineapple. Son Goku, the greatest martial artist ever to walk the Earth. A powerful force whom had saved many races from demise and gladly gave his life not once but twice to save human kind.
This was the power that Uub was now training against, no fighting against.

Every blow was charged with enough power to kill almost every human on the planet and were thrown with skill and strategy that were honed and sharpened like a samurai's blade.

Uub watched his teacher's smiling face as he dodged another blow that would have surely knocked him out for hours had it connected with his face before retaliating with a strike of his own. Soon, they were manoeuvring against each other with a speed that left no time for thought or calculation, nearly every blow was blocked or dodged as they circled around each other like birds in flight.

'Maybe if I use the technique Vegeta-sensei taught me? ' Uub thought desperately as he blocked an earth shattering blow from his teacher. He managed, somehow to pull off a feint against the Godly force that was Goku and laid a kick deep in the elder man's gut. Capitalizing on this momentary respite, Uub flew backwards and began to bring all his spare power to the surface. He could not hold his voice back as a burning sensation filled every muscle.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" He yelled as an aura of the brightest pink burst up around him, sparking with bio-electricity as the man powered up for a colossal attack.

"GALICK GUN FIIIIIIIIIIIIRE!" Uub cried as he brought is hands together, a bright purple blast of Ki forming into a powerful beam of energy. Goku saw this and smiled, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

The beam of purest energy hit the man head on yet that smile stayed on his face, enjoying every moment as if it were a game.

With a yell, Goku unleashed a Kiai, forcing the energy down with his own will and power. This however left him open for the tiniest second and Uub didn't waste any of it. Goku let out a yelp as Uub's fist dug deep into his stomach, throwing him down into the rocks that shaped the ground below.

A moment later, the raven haired warrior was back as if the blow had caused him nothing but discomfort and their close combat started anew, each blow more ferocious than the last. Far around, people could hear the shockwaves as the two Godlike warriors fought their battle. The ignorant men could only assume or believe that they were witnessing fireworks and not a battle worthy of the strongest men on Earth.
"You've come so far in the last few years Uub. I'm glad I talked the others into training you, you're so strong now, even without the Kaioken." Goku said with a smile as he landed a punch on his student's shoulder. Uub winced but smiled too.

"I am glad that you gave me this chance. Now I can provide for my family and help protect this world." He said gratefully.

"Now let's get back to-" Uub had wanted to learn a new technique today, perhaps even the instant transmission however this was never to be as he was interrupted by a loud rumbling sound. Goku's stomach made a sound like a celestial train whenever it was empty and had often caused an avalanche when they had trained in snowier regions. It was also usually a sign that training was over. It is said that every warrior has one weakness and if that were true then Goku's hunger would most certainly be his.

"Hehe, sorry but it looks like training's over. Want to come back and have some with us?" Goku said, stroking the back of his neck childishly. One would never imagine that the man was in his late forties just by looking at him.

Uub weighed it up in his head. Having dinner at the Son's was always an interesting experience, to say the least. The food was always amazing and Chi-chi always cooked enough food to feed the planet thrice over, which was just more than enough for several hungry Saiyans and their friends and family. Then there was Chi-chi and her daughter in law, Videl. One wrong word in the proximity of either of them would earn him a harsh punishment with a large scary looking frying pan. Then there was the other Sons. Gohan, Goten, Maaku; the young son of Videl and Gohan, and, of course, Son Pan. Their company was always enjoyable, like a divine comedy, and being around her never hurt.

"Of course I will, Sensei. I don't have any work to do in the fields today." Uub smiled, bowing to his teacher.
"Well come on then, I think Chi-chi's making meatballs." Goku licked his lips, flying towards home. Uub flew behind them, still unable to match the speed of a hungry Goku whom had his wife's amazing cooking in sight.

He loved these times of peace and was glad that he was given the time to get stronger. He was truly afraid of the day when he had to fight, for despite his teacher's best encouragements he still believed he didn't have the power to face a threat like those they told stories of.

He thanked Kami that the day when he would be put to test was so far away.

Or so he thought.

"Thank goodness they stopped fighting, Mister Popo. If I weren't around to fix up the Earth and to keep the old girl glued together then I don't know what you would do." A tall teenage Namekian in guardian's dress stood, watching over the edge of a palace like structure in the sky.
"You are right, young master Dende, still, you did make them promise to take their fight to the Other World should they wish to fight with all their power." A small man with pure black skin whom resembled a genie spoke softly, his tone kind and caring. Anyone who knew the servant knew that he was bound to help the guardians of Earth until one released him. Many had tried to do so out of kindness however the Djin loved to watch over the beauty of the Earth and personally admitted that he would miss caring for the palace gardens too much if he were released. Thus he had served for thousands of years and now was helping the youngest Guardian in his duties.

All of a sudden, the voice of the third denizen of the God's lookout sounded out.
"Dende, Mister Popo. I feel something powerful coming towards the planet." The speaker said as he walked out towards the two guardians. This was Piccolo, the demon warrior. He, like Dende, was a Namekian, however, he was a fighter, and a powerful one at that.

"What? Why haven't I felt its power? If it's something that you are concerned with then even I should feel it by now." Dende said, turning around, the guardian's staff held tightly within his hand. Piccolo shook his head slowly.

"The powers are being concealed electronically, like the cyborgs. I've been training so that I can sense the energy that is used by their kind. If my calculations are correct, they will be here very soon." Piccolo said.

"What is its intent?" Dende asked, frowning.

"I do not know, however I sent whatever it is a message through telepathy. If they receive it then they will most likely come here. If not, then I will meet them myself." Piccolo said, his eyes closed as he tried to piece together what might be coming.

"There will be no need for that." A female voice said quite suddenly. The three guardians turned, their eyes wide at the sight of the intruder. No, intruders.

There were two of them, the speaker was obviously female from her shape. She looked almost human, and even had skin resembling that of a Caucasian woman. It was her eyes that betrayed her. They were unlike that of any human, looking closer to those of a tiger and were a deep emerald green. Her long pure white hair washed over her body and reached her feet. The more delicate parts of her figure were hidden by a simple silken dress that seemed to be made from a single sheet of material. She was smiling kindly as if addressing an old friend, an expression that did not befit their situation. The Namekians had little concept of beauty but understood enough to know that she would be considered very attractive.

Her companion was starkly different. He seemed to be male and looked quite alien comparably. His arms were bound in front of him in strange metal chains, locked together painfully tight. The skin that they could see was also Caucasian, though pale as snow. This however was only seen on his hands, feet and from his neck upwards. The rest of his body was covered in a thick layer of pure black fur, and while it showed some of the definition of his muscle, his more sensitive features were hidden. Along his chest and over his arms were a web of blue lines that shone with a strange light from beneath his fur. As they were, they webbed out in a seemingly random pattern. This must be the device used to conceal their power. No, to go to such lengths as embedding it in their skin, it must do something more.

He had a mane of course wiry dark blue hair that was so long that in his current posture, one could not see his face. He had, upon his back, a pair of wings made up of feathers, like those of a bird. These were held down with the same metal chains that bound his arms. Below this hung a long tail like that of a lion though instead of a tuft of hair, some madman had attached a cruel metal blade that glinted as his tail moved. Above his head was something piccolo had seen before. A halo. But his was different from the one that floated above the heads of the dead. First, it did not shine with the holy light, second, there were three black rings fastened tight to it, giving it a synthetic, technological look. All in all, he was definitely the more chimerical looking of the two and was all but certainly the result of some form of experiment.

Piccolo analysed the two quickly. They were powerful, for sure but it was hard to gauge a cyborg's energy next to an organic being's. They were much more powerful than 17 and 18 for sure though.

"I assume that you have come to this planet for a reason. If you come in peace, you will find us hospitable and reasonable. Otherwise, begone or you will regret it." Piccolo said gruffly, looking upon the two.

"Verily, master Namekian. We have come to-" The woman began.

"That is enough." The rough, broken voice of the companion spoke as he stepped forward.

"Namekian, are you one of the powers we sensed coming from this planet?" He said, his face still out of view.
"I can hold my own against those who threaten us but there are some on this planet who dwarf me without trying." Piccolo said, a slight smile tugging against his mouth. It was amazing really. Here he was, the pinnacle of his race, a super Namekian with more ability than most of his race and he was so easily dwarfed by the men down there.

"Bring them to me. Or take me to them. It doesn't matter which." The companion spoke, a cold wind blowing between him.

"Why do you need them?" Piccolo asked calculatingly. The beast like man looked at the Namekian in the eyes. He was very human like there too with pure yellow almond shaped eyes and a complexion that was easy on the eyes. He would have looked child like if it weren't for the hungry grin he seemed to constantly have that showed off his many sharp teeth.

"I was made to fight and destroy. You pick which one you'd rather me do here. Satisfy my need for one, and I will leave." He said, grinning at the Namekian, his pupils dilating in a combination of the light hitting his eyes and his own bloodlust.

Piccolo closed his eyes and shook his head.

"You would have us choose between fighting you and destruction? If you tried the latter here, we would stop you at all costs." Piccolo said simply.

Dende watched on in shock. He was the guardian, the God in charge of protecting Earth. He was supposed to protect Earth at times like this. Still, the newcomers had given them a choice. Either way they were going to call for whom he considered to be the Earth's guardians in everything but name.

'Come on Goku, why is your telepathical signal always the hardest to get through to?' Dende thought as he watched the stare down between Piccolo and the newcomer.

Goku was eating faster than the speed of light. Literally. A whole cow worth of meat disappeared into the black hole of a man in less than a second. Even the other Saiyans at the table didn't compare to his speed. Had Vegeta chosen today of all days to stage an eating contest with his rival, an act that was supposedly the second biggest challenge between two Saiyan men, he would have lost outright. Goten, Gohan, Pan and Maaku all ate atrociously but at least they had the decency to use some form of cutlery. Pan was sat next to Uub and her younger brother as she was supposed to keep an eye on them, but it was always more fun to watch their antics, even if it meant having to face the frying pan of doom every now and then. While her grandmother wasn't looking she used her hands to help her rip a massive chunk of meat off of a bone. Once she'd finished with this, she turned to Uub.

"So why didn't you invite me along to your little match earlier?" She asked Uub grumpily. She always hated it when he trained with her grandpa without her there.

"Your mom told me that if I pull you away from your studies then she'll kill me. No questions asked." He said, putting his hands up. Training day in and day out with a man as innocent as Son Goku had taken a toll on the already naive man and a lot of the world was lost to him, he'd even stopped counting his age a while ago though at a guess he'd have to say that he was getting into his twenties.

They really had been doing this a while. At any rate, Uub was still human, despite all the evidence to the contrary and he'd been hard pressed not to notice the woman he'd spent so much time training with. Son Pan had been his training partner for almost his entire time learning under Goku. The warrior had said that he'd learned best when he was training with Krillen as it was better to have a rival, and in more difficult times, a friend to train with.

Because of this, the two had very rarely been apart and Uub had grown accustomed to having Pan around.
So when both Chi-chi and Videl had 'talked' her into getting a proper job, it had come as quite the culture shock to the fighter. He felt good being around her, she could lighten any mood, just like her grandfather but was far from being as innocent as he and often acted as one might imagine a child of Vegeta's to.

She was definitely his friend, no doubt about that. But the other feelings just confused him so he tried his best to ignore them.

I mean, how do you feel like that about someone whom has punched you in the face? Repeatedly? It didn't add up, at least to him.
His eyes must have glazed over as his mind went off on this tangent because the next thing he knew was being punched in the arm by none other than the devil herself.
"Uub, will you stop daydreaming?! Or will let me have your food too?" Pan said, flicking a stray hair away from her eyes.
"Hey, I may not be a Saiyan but I-" Uub began.
'Hey! Son family?! Can you hear me? It's Dende! Is this thing on?' Dende's disembodied voice came through the roof.

"Oh hello God, is everything okay?" Videl asked cheerily as she washed up the cooking pots with help from Chi-chi.

'Please don't call me that, Mrs. Videl. We have some... Visitors up here and they might be trouble. One of they says that we either have to let him fight someone strong or let him destroy. He won't say what.' Dende spoke urgently.

'So please hurry and well, I think it might be best if everyone weaker than Piccolo stayed behind. These two are a lot stronger than him. It's like watching him face Shin again.' He finished. Boy did that Namekian run his mouth when he was scared. He must've picked it up from Krillen at some point.

"Oooh?! Strong guys? I'll go get Vegeta and Trunks. Gohan, you get everyone to the lookout." Goku said, stuffing over eight thousand pieces of meat into his mouth at once as he put two fingers to his head.
"Bymffyfy." Goku mumbled before disappearing with a thwip sound.

"Alright, Uub, Pan, Goten, we need to at least check this out. Hold onto me." Gohan said, standing up. The scholar and former strongest man in the universe put his glasses on the table. His youngest child floated over to him pouting.
"Dad, why won't you let me fight?" The young boy said. He looked remarkably like Gohan had when he was that age but even that amount of cute would not sway Gohan.
"I'm sorry son but I will be fighting to keep you and your mother and the rest of our family safe. You aren't even as strong as Piccolo-sensei yet, so live so you can get stronger and fight when I no longer can." Gohan said.

"I... Okay papa." Maaku said, sitting down at the table. Well, if he was going to be left here, at last he was being left with lots of grandma Chi-chi's cooking.

"Now let's go. Father probably has Vegeta convinced by now. You too Goten."
"But..."
"For Dende's sake, Goten, Vegeta will force Bra and Trunks into coming, you can talk to them about this... problem of yours when we've done with the bigger problem. Now let's go." The eldest demi-saiyan said, reaching out his hand. The other three warriors grabbed onto Gohan and he made the infamous gesture that made them all disappear.

"FOR SPACE KAMI'S SAKE KAKAROT, I WILL NOT HAVE YOU USING YOUR LITTLE MAGIC TRICK TO JUST TAKE ME AND MY CHILDREN WHEREVER YOU PLEASE!" A rather pissed off Saiyan prince yelled at Goku. What had happened was that Goku had appeared and found Vegeta, Trunks and Bra in the training room, swallowed his entire cheek stock of meat, spluttered some incomprehensible nonsense about 'strong people' and had instantly transmitted them to the lookout.
"Wait Vegeta! It's just that Dende said that someone really strong was on the lookout so I thought you'd want to see them!" Goku reasoned.

"Pah! This better be good Bakarot or I'll break your legs." The eldest Saiyan said, turning to look at the two people who would either make his day or make him break Kakarot's day, in more ways than one.

"Here are the fighters you so kindly requested us to bring." Piccolo said, stepping back. The male had been sat cross legged while the female had asked to inspect the guardian's staff. She had long returned it to Dende but her words about it were still etched into the young Namekian's mind. What had she meant when she had said that it contained a powerful magic?
"Your strongest warriors? But I do not read the power that we came here for. Is your most powerful warrior hidden?" He asked, his eyes closed.
"By taking power levels and basing our skill on them, you are selling everyone short, especially yourself." Gohan said, scratching the bridge of his nose where his reading glasses usually laid.

"Let me put it to you simply; Power levels are bullshit." Vegeta sneered.
"They don't tell you what we can do or how much power we are hiding."

"Then why don't you show me yourself, little Vegeta." The man smirked, watching Vegeta's expression flicker.
"Yeah, I know your name, it's not hard given you're still on a load of wanted posters. One hundred billion Kurizan universal credits for anyone who brings home the prince's head. I am no bounty hunter though. I have no need for money. My Name is Synchro. That is all you need to know." He said, smiling his insane smile.

"Enough with the words that nobody cares about. As a Saiyan, I will accept your little challenge and ascend above it." The Saiyan prince said, smiling.

"You come to me so readily. Only a Saiyan would. Masochists, the lot of you. Harmony, my chains, if you would be so kind." He said. For a moment, no-one knew what he was talking about. Then they realised that Harmony must be the name of the woman behind him. Said woman rose a sword and cut through more than chain. With her swing, she took Synchro's wings straight off of his back.

The Saiyans (and Uub) watched in shock as the offending limbs turned to dust and his chains fell slowly.

"Are you surprised? You look it." Synchro said, smiling with his eyes closed.
"How does the poem go? 'The bird of God, that is me / I sever my wings to make me free.' That's a literal translation by the way." He smiled, waving Harmony away. Vegeta just smirked and crossed his arms. He was fresh off of training in the gravity room with two pissed off post adolescents. He was going to need something to vent on. He had planned to take it out on the class clown but this psycho would make a much better punching bag.

"How about I give you a little lesson in super Saiyans? You want a powerful fighter, right? Well then, you better get ready to witness a power not seen for thousands of years!" The prince of all Saiyans laughed, looking at the new warrior with a smile of his own on his face.
"I'm looking forward to the ultimate show, prince Vegeta." Synchro smiled, this comment earning him a glare as the warriors faced off, looking into each other's eyes. A tension burned between them and the air hummed with anticipation as the two walked towards each other like unstoppable forces.
This would truly be Earth's ultimate show.

Alrighty Guys and gals out there, this is a little side project of mine that I'm bringing in some writing for you know because I can and all that.
Please, please review and stuff, I want to know what you people think. Should this stuff end here? Or should I make this a thing.
Either way, thank you for reading my latest piece of random keyboard slamming. Night all.
~Hadessonjames