Disclaimer: I own the main character of this story. And it will be a story that revolves around her more so than any other character in the DBZ Universe. She will eventually enter the actual time stream of the rest of the characters but that won't happen until chapter 17. Yes, you heard correct. So if you don't like long stories with lots of character development, this may not be a story for you. But if you do, I think you're going to enjoy it. I also apologize for the weak beginning, but if you're hero was capable of coming right out of the starting blocks a winner, it wouldn't be much of a story, would it?

Chapter 1: Tessellation

The girl sighed as she sunk further into her seat in the office. She ran a hand through the brilliant red hair and nervously tucked the loose strands back behind her ear. They didn't stay there long before resuming their position of standing on end. She hated her hair. It spiked up in random directions and the closest she could come to controlling was to pull most of it back into a ponytail. Even then, her bangs would stand on end creating a frame around her face and the ponytail itself stood on end and straight back. What she hated more than her hair though were the people who thought that she was trying to get attention with it. It wasn't like she tried to spike it, it just happened. And no one seemed to care that she'd much rather go completely unnoticed by everyone.

Meanwhile, she had the school secretary sending her nasty glares from over the counter and all she could do was bow her head further as she kicked her legs. She was so short that her feet didn't even drag across the floor as they swung. It was hard being fifteen and only 4'1". She kept praying that one day she'd be graced with a growth spurt that would make her look her age rather than like a little middle school kid. There was a ruffling of papers as the secretary gave the girl another sharp look. She had a feeling the paperwork had something to do with the wrecked row of lockers in the west wing.

It wasn't her fault that the locker had jammed. And it certainly wasn't her fault that when she'd attempted to knock whatever it was jamming her locker loose that her locker and the ones on either side of it had been ripped free of the wall and then so severely dented that they were nearly bent in half. It had been a moment of frustration and apparently she really didn't know her own strength. Ever since she'd gotten out of the hospital, she'd had a nasty habit of breaking things, like her father's truck door, the refrigerator, the trash can—or at least what was left of that. And this was certainly not helping her to fly below anyone's radar. And if there was anything worse than being in trouble at school, it was being in trouble at home where most of these accidents kept happening.

"Tessellation, would you please step in here for a moment?" Tessa stood up with more than slight apprehension. She followed her principal into his office and flopped down into the chair opposite of his. She couldn't bring herself to look him in the face so she stared at his nameplate instead. Principal Dave Rickmeyer

"I swear I didn't mean it…I swear…"

Principal Rickmeyer held up a hand to silence her that she caught out of the corner of her eye. "I don't need an explanation. What I do need is a promise that you'll restrain from attacking public property in future outbursts."

Her head swiveled around to glare at her principal. "An outburst?! It was an accident and if you'd only listen instead of…" Again she was cut off by being shown the palm of his hand and she threw herself back against the chair in disgust and stared up at the ceiling. It was made of the flimsy tile material that kids liked to toss pencils into like a dart board.

"Now, Miss Reynolds, I'm going to have to call you father and discuss this with him. There are some serious emotional problems behind this and I hope that together we can get to the bottom of it." Tessa sat up about to protest but thought better of it. "Perhaps this has to do with feelings of abandonment. It's normal for adopted children…"

Tessa had had enough, "Look, this has nothing to do with my being adopted—or my mom. And you don't get it, do you? You can't call my father because he's not going to want to talk about my issues with you." Tanga held up her fingers in midair to make quotation marks around the word 'issues' and only received narrowed eyes from her principal in response. "And when I get home, he's going to take a far less cuddly approach than you seem to have imagined."

"There's no need to overreact now."

Tessa popped up and out of her seat in the blink of an eye. The principal obviously didn't do his homework when dealing with families. "I'm not…ever since my mom died, and he lost his job, Dad's been leaning on the bottle and if he's good and drunk he'll…he'll…well God only knows what he'll do." Tessa suddenly was gripped by the flashback of how she'd wound up in the hospital to begin with. The fear was like a vice on her lungs and she couldn't breath let alone speak anymore. She quickly turned on her heel and stormed out of the room before Principal Rickmeyer could say anymore.

God, who does that guy think he is. Screw school and him too. With that thought in mind she turned the corner at the end of the hall and walked right out of the building as the secretary rose to her feet to watch through the glass walls.

Tessa groaned as she turned onto the final block on her walk home. Her father was waiting for her, sitting in a lawnchair on the porch, beer bottle in hand. She forced herself to look normal as if nothing was wrong even though she was coming home before lunchtime. She forced herself to put the normal bounce in her step as she bounded up the steps and onto the porch. She opened the screen door only to have it pushed shut again.

"Hi Daddy." She turned slowly to look up at him. This was definitely one of the days she felt dwarfed by her 6'2" tall father. Not even the tallest of the spikes in her hair reached his arm pits.

"Don't give me that shit." He spun her around by her shoulder and pushed her back against the siding. "What the hell were you thinking, huh? I just got a call from the school. You know how much money they want? Maybe you haven't noticed but we don't have that much extra cash lying around for you to destroy the school." His expression was contorted into fury, his nose gleaming red from the alcohol and the blood shot eyes did nothing to relieve the fierce look.

"It was an accident, promise, Daddy." He narrowed his eyes with disbelief and Tessa cringed, pressing into the wall hoping that it could provide her some protection. Either that or she could melt into it.

"Just like my truck?" Tessa nodded her head avoiding the urge to look at the red truck parked curbside with the passenger side door smashed in. Her father took her nodding badly and backhanded her hard enough to knock her head off the side of the house.

Tessa blinked in surprise as her breathing became harder from the rush of adrenaline that coursed through her veins. Her surprise did not come from the blow, she had actually been expecting that, but rather her surprise was rooted in that she hadn't really felt it. Of course she knew she'd been hit but there was no stinging, no throbbing from where her head bashed into and through the siding.

When he'd gone to strike her, he's released his grip on her shoulder and she used the chance to slide to the side a little and allowed her eyes to glance to the side. She could see the broken siding and then her gaze quickly shifted to her father whose face was rapidly turning redder with anger and frustration. What's up with me going through walls lately?

"Now look what you've done. Everything winds up broken except for you, you useless bitch." He raised his hand to strike her again but Tessa brought her arm up to block it at the last second. Instead of his fist connecting with her jaw he struck her forearm and reeled back howling in pain.

Tessa could only stare. Once again, she knew she'd been hit but felt nothing. When her father had finished rubbing his reddening knuckles he stepped forward and grabbed her arm pushing the sleeve of her shirt back. "What the hell you made of, girl? Goddamn steel?"

He moved to strike her again but Tessa was faster. She delivered a swift punch to his gut, which sent him falling back, coughing and hacking before he fell unconscious. She gasped at how easily it had happened without her even really thinking about it and stood staring down at her hand as she slowly opened and closed her fist in wonder. Her vision's focus then shifted from her hand to her father's still body lying on the porch and she quickly glanced around to see if anyone else had seen her. Seeing no one else on her street block, she turned and ran inside the house and raced up the stairs to her room where she flung herself down onto the bed, burying her tear streaked face into the pillows.

She tried to make sense of everything but there was no sense to be had in the situation. She may have just inadvertently killed her father and had simply left his body lying out in the open right in front of the house for anyone to see. How stupid could she be? Whatever she was going to do, she needed to act quickly.

She pushed herself up onto all fours and stared across the room into the mirror. Reflected in it was a chiseled face framed in wild red spikes of hair and dark eyes that were almost black. A sharp pointed nose finished off the 'don't mess with me' look. She looked nothing like her father who had brown hair in a military cut and round, ruddy features. Nor did she look like the woman in the photo frame with her soft features and auburn hair.

She knew she was adopted but sometimes she had to wonder where from. She didn't really look like anyone. She certainly wasn't normal looking that was for sure. If she didn't know better, she'd have thought she was some kind of alien, not human at all. But aliens weren't real…just stories made up to scare kids.

She decided to stop wasting time and leave before he woke up, that is if he was even still alive. He was one of three things from what she could tell-dead, unconscious, or in a coma. She wasn't sure if she really wanted him to wake up though. If he was still alive he'd be really pissed and would come after her. But if he was dead, then she'd be able to just move on with life and not a soul would miss her. That much she knew. The more she thought about it the more she hoped that she'd accidentally killed him.

I just hope the police would buy that load of crap. She crossed the room to her dresser and began pulling out what few things she'd take with her. She stuffed a few changes of clothes in her back pack and tossed it over her shoulder before heading back down the stairs. As she breezed through the door for the last time she grabbed her windbreaker. She forced herself to glance down at her father's prone body again after she'd reached the sidewalk. She had to crane her neck to see the back of his head. She sighed hoping it would be a while before anyone found him because it would buy her more time to get away.

She didn't know where she wanted to go, just knew that she wanted to go as far away from the here and now as possible. She didn't know how possible that wish was.

Tessa found herself sitting at the bus station wondering why she had to be so stupid. She never once thought to grab some cash before walking out of the house. She couldn't go back, that was certain. She looked around and saw no way of sneaking onto a bus. She didn't care if she got kicked off in another city but she had a feeling she wouldn't make it ten feet from the bus station. She sighed as she flopped back against the bench in self disgust. It just wasn't her day.

She decided that there really wasn't that much she could do and it was now getting late. She started watching the people around her hurrying to catch the last buses for the night. She figured that she'd eventually grow bored and fall asleep. And it would be better to sleep as long as she could here where there'd be a roof over her head before she was kicked out.

However she couldn't help but grow curious by a single person who seemed determined to blend in but was finding it to be impossible. He was a giant at seven foot something. She shuddered at the thought of how much taller—probably a good three feet taller—he was than her. The stranger kept close to the walls to avoid mixing in with people and was moving past her bench from behind. She whipped her head back around to look over her other shoulder so she didn't lose him and watched his progress.

He didn't seem to be moving towards the buses but in an almost erratic path as if he was looking for someone. Curiosity really got the best of her as she found herself standing up from the bench, her carefully packed bag abandoned behind her. She moved quickly through the crowd to follow him but she kept getting pushed around because people were too preoccupied to notice some short kid but she was able to easily push right back.

"Watch where you're going!"

"Sorry."

She turned her head to look back at the woman she'd accidentally knocked to the ground and when she turned back she lost sight of the giant man. What the…how could I lose a guy like that? He was huge! As she reached the wall she continued to search over the crowd but couldn't spot him again. She sighed as she leaned back and found herself to be leaning on someone instead. She slowly tilted her head back and gasped at the site above her.

A wrinkled face with wide eyes and beady little pupils was staring back down at her. He wore a brimmed ball cap and a high collared coat that shadowed his face from most but it was impossible for Tessa to not notice this close up. "You're…you're green."

"Now's not the time for stating the obvious." Despite his frail looking age, he took a firm grasp of her upper arm and led her away from the bus stops and the crowds. For the first time, running away seemed like a terribly bad idea. She was going to be kidnapped, raped, murdered, and God only knew what else… "Stop trying to resist. I won't hurt you." She stopped dead in her tracks at his business like tone and he allowed her to. They were already on the other side of the road and a good ways down when they'd stopped. No one would hear her scream but she wasn't sure if she needed to anymore.

"You know it's funny…I was just convincing myself that aliens don't exist." The green man made no response except for a small twitch at the corner of his mouth. She watched curiously as he removed the long trench coat and ball cap. Long pointed ears and antenna like things stood on top of his head. He wore a loose fitting purple outfit with a blue belt and before her eyes a great white cape and turban appeared. He paused briefly to put them on before he started walking again. "Okay, if we're going to be at this for awhile, we might as while get to know each other. My name's Tessellation, but everyone calls me Tessa."

"Piccolo."

"What?"

"My name is Piccolo."

"Oh…that's different." He turned his head to look down at her and she jumped forward plastering a grin on her face. "In a good way. Totally cool. Love the instrument too." He shook his head as she practically skipped and jogged to keep up with his long stride. "I guess you're wondering why I ran away."

"No."

"Not the slightest bit curious?"

"No. I knew that you knocked out your father. He's in the hospital already and should recover quickly."

"Were you stalking me? 'Cause that's just creepy."

"No, I could sense your power. For someone who doesn't do any training, you're extremely strong."

"Hey, I do enough. I walk to and from school and I play softball in the summer. You know there are kids who just sit on their butts and watch TV."

Piccolo gazed at her appraisingly and shook his head as he continued walking. "What I'm trying to tell you is that you're unnaturally strong when compared to other humans. You have a gift."

"A gift for what? All I seem capable of is destruction of personal and public property and for it, I get into a lot of trouble," Tessa grumbled as she crossed her arms over her chest. Her expression was set with her mouth forming a thin line as her brow furrowed.

"You could be a great fighter."

"Why would I want to do that? I mean, I get it; I don't exactly have a plan right now. But of all things I could decide to do with my life, becoming a fighter wasn't even scratching its way onto the bottom of the list. Sorry if I'm not ready to play the Rocky to your Paulie," she said rolling her eyes.

Piccolo just looked at her in confusion not catching the reference. "It's been a long time since I recognized a fighter with your potential."

"Potential, huh? I think that's the first time that word's ever been applied to me." She cast him a sideways glance as she pondered the possibilities. "Of all the people I could have walked out of that bus station with, I didn't pick the child molestor, I didn't pick the woman who'd turn me in to child protective services, oh no, I picked the alien who wants to turn me into a professional fighter. Where are you from anyway?"

"My race is from a planet called Namek. My father came here thousands of years ago and became one of Earth's guardians."

"And what exactly did you do?"

"I along with other warriors fought for Earth's peace from foreign threats."

"Foreign as in intergalactic?" Tessa asked. Piccolo nodded. "So you're pretty damn old, huh?"

"You could say that. We Namekians tend to live a long time naturally and I've found other ways to augment my lifespan."

"Huh. How can I believe you? A couple thousand years ago the Earth was in the Stone Age."

"No. The Earth regressed back to the Stone Age after we lost in a battle. At one time, the Earth was just as, if not more, advanced than it is now."

"Now that's stuff they don't tell you in school." She furrowed her brows further in contemplation. "Why should I go with you?" she asked suddenly.

"Why would you not? You certainly didn't look like you had any plans."

"I-I could. I only agreed to take a walk with you. Nothing more," Tessa argued stubbornly as she planted her hands on her hips. Piccolo shrugged and turned walking back the way they came. "Hey! Wait! Where are you going?" Tessa ran after him waving her hand for him to stop.

"If you're not interested in my training you, then I thought I'd just walk you right back to the bus station."

"Well, hypothetically," Tessa started, "if I did go with you to train. Where exactly would we be going?"

Piccolo smirked realizing he had her attention again. "I'd have to take you there. Think of it as an extended camping trip if you will."

"Okay, I'm listening. How would we get there?"

"Seeing as I found you sitting in a bus station, I take it you don't know how to fly yet. So I suppose I'd have to carry you."

"Wait, I could learn to fly? That's so cool." Tessa began racing ahead, her arms spread out wide as she imitated a soaring hawk, winding this way and that along the birm of the road.

Piccolo narrowed his eyes at the girl's suddenly peaked excitement. Had it really been that simple all along to get her hook, line, and sinker?

Piccolo couldn't believe he was doing this. Whatever had driven him to find the source of this power was either sentimentality from old age or the fact that he was bored. But now it was something else. She looked so familiar and yet so different at the same time. Despite her age, there was still a bit of childish wonder to her that reminded him so much of his old friend, Goku. At the same time, there was a raw, stubborn nature that reminded him of a very different Saiyan. But at the same time, he could make the claim that she reminded him of Krillin in her wise cracking manners. There was no way of knowing where the girl had come from and why she possessed such enormous natural strength.

She'd fallen asleep as he carried her while flying over the earth below. She would need a lot of training but if her powers were this great without any help at all, she could be just as strong if not stronger than some of the others, certainly some of the weaker fighters he'd known like Yamcha and Tien. And for a while, their strengths had been sufficient to ward off many enemies. He had no way of knowing whether or not karma would balance itself out as it seemed to do. Perhaps that was the true reason for seeking her out. It seemed that as Goku had trained and become stronger, so had the quality of his enemies and those that sought to do harm to Earth. It could just be the balance of forces playing out on Earth that each time a fighter arose who was capable, they were to be challenged in any way possible.

Looking down at her he couldn't help but once again be struck by the familiarity of her features. She had sharp features in her facial structure, her mouth was small and pointed like her nose, but her forehead was broad with a sharp widow's peak coming down across it. And oh, was she stubborn. He couldn't believe that she'd had the gall to insist that she might have something better to do than come train. It was plainly obvious to anyone that she was a child without a cause and anywhere to go. But he could tell that her stubbornness would be of benefit when it came to training. It would make her more determined.

As he watched she yawned and buried her head into his arm with a small sigh. It had been a long time since he'd trained anyone and now he was training a girl. He had to wonder what he'd gotten himself into.