A/N: cover art by rocio-mb on deviantart. Shout-out to Flashfox Tyrell05 for being the first person to favorite and follow this story. You should all follow this example. Shout-out to RedLightsRedFights, whose story "The Bond" majorly inspired this one.
For clarification: (….) is modern-day Lynn commenting on her flashback, text in italics is flashback Lynn's thoughts.
Long conversations will be divided as follows:
"First speaker"
"Second speaker"
"First"
"Second" etc. who is speaking will either be clear from context, or will be explicitly mentioned.
I own only my original character, Lynn. The following is a non-profit, fan-based fanfiction. Dragonball, Dragonball Z, and Dragonball GT are all owned by Funimation, Toei Animation, Fuji TV, and Akira Toriyama. Please support the official release.
Revelations
Before I get too far ahead of myself, I suppose I should give some sort of introduction beyond "crazy pink girl who runs around forests scaring the crap out of poor hunters". My name is Lynn. Yeah, yeah, I know what you're thinking, "That doesn't sound like an alien's name". Well that's because I'm adopted remember? Jeez, keep up people. Anyways, as I mentioned earlier, I have bubblegum-pink skin, short wavy tentacles, or head-tails, for hair, and purple eyes. I'm about five foot, two (ok, so five foot, one and a half, same difference). I'm your typical girl: fascinated by fighting, has been beaten too a pulp more times that she can count, loves exploring other planets, part-time galactic protector, etc., etc.…. Wait, that's not what normal earthling girls do? Huh, guess I've been around the Z-fighters too long...but we're not there yet. First we have to go back to that fateful day when I got so rudely shot trying to introduce myself, and everything changed...
"Gran, Gran are you home? Something really bad happened in the woods outside Orange Star City!" The word city is hardly out of my mouth when Gran appears in the garden outside our house as if out of thin air. She's always been worried I would sneak into the city, and now I know why. "What did you do Lynn?" She asks in a worried, yet somehow still disapproving tone. She does that really well, making you feel like she's not mad and at the same time still making you worried about what your punishment will be. I guess all grandmothers do that. She looks like I think most grandmothers do, too: short and slightly stooped over with age, lined but firm face, and wise eyes that can either twinkle with merriment or look like stones in anger. Which they do now. Gulp. "Gran is wasn't my fault I was running in the woods and there was this deer and I was racing it and then this man showed up and then" "Stop, child." She cuts off my rambling explanation and forces me to take a breath. "Now start again, slowly this time." I inhale deeply and focus on not stammering this time. "I was racing a deer in the woods outside the city, and then there was a bang and it fell over. This man came out of the bushes, and he looked like you! I mean, he looked like you told me men do, but he wasn't pink like me and he had actual hair! I thought you were the only one like that Gran?"
She sighs, realizing that this day had to come eventually. "Sit down Lynn, I have a lot to tell you". I sit down at the kitchen table, totally unaware that my life was about to come crashing down around my ear-holes. (Erm, yeah, I probably should've mentioned, I don't have ears per se. They're just holes that sound goes in. They work the same way as human ears, they just look different. Anyways...) "Try not to interrupt, I will answer your questions when I've finished". I nod nervously and wonder what could be this important. Surely I, adorable pixie that I am, couldn't have caused too much trouble by simply trying to save a deer? Somehow, I managed to sit still as she began her tale, my tale. "Twelve years ago, I was walking through these very woods, when I came across a small pink sphere at the bottom of a small crater. Not knowing what it was, I brought it home, thinking that I might be able to sell it in the city. That night, however, it cracked open and I woke up the next morning to find a pink baby sitting on my kitchen table. That baby was you, Lynn." "But what do you mean, you found me in a crater!? And how did I come out of that pink thing if you're my grandmother?" I can't help but interrupt. "Lynn, I'm not your actual grandmother," she says in exasperation. "I just raised you because you have no one else. You only call me Gran because I'm not you mother and it's improper to call the woman raising you by her first name." My eyes grow wide as I take in this new information. "But...but...then where am I from if I'm not from Earth?" All I get is a despondent "I don't know. I tried to find out what you are, and where you are from, but one can only do so much research into pink alien babies before people start asking questions." I guess that make sense to me now, but it doesn't really do much to satisfy a twelve-year-old's curiosity.
Gran looks at me, and I can tell she's wondering whether or not to tell me something. We sit there in silence for a few seconds, me digesting life-changing revelations and her gathering her words for her next info-bomb. Finally, she takes a deep breath and shocks me with her next words: "Lynn, I think you should train and learn how to fight." Now, you have to understand that this is the woman who taught me never to harm a living creature unless I absolutely had to, who got mad if I shot a frog with my slingshot and then refused to eat it (like, eww). And now here she is telling me she wants me to learn to fight? Why? "Why, Gran?" "Because Lynn, you're special. You've always been faster and stronger than human girls you're age, and human boys for that matter. You did not come from this planet, and while you may have been peaceful, if not a little rambunctious, the next visitor our planet gets might not be so inclined. Do you understand?" "You...you want me to be ready to fight someone who comes here to be a bully?" She smiles at my childish interpretation. "Yes child, I want you to be able to protect the innocent people of this planet, in the same way you wanted to protect that deer." Wow...me protecting the whole wide world? How can I do that? But if I really am special, I might be the only one who can. "Ok, what do I do?" She gazes at me with pride in those wide eyes of hers, and tells me to gather as many small rocks as I can from the forest. Despite being slightly confused as to how exactly that would help me learn to fight, I do what she says and trudge off into the trees.
After about fifteen minutes of mind-numbingly boring rock gathering, I had collected a good-sized pile. Bringing the, back the house, I saw Gran waiting for me outside wearing an outfit I had never seen before. It looked like something out of one of those old martial arts movies she sometimes let me watch. I would later learn that she was wearing a kimono, hakama pants, and sandals, or in other words the standard attire of a ninja. "Gran what are you wearing?" I giggled. Her mouth narrows in disapproval at my antics. "For your information young lady, this is a uniform that should garner much respect. Many years ago, I was a ninja. Ninjas are warriors who fight injustice and dishonorable people. Sadly, I am too old to fight now, so I must impart my skills to you." I stare at here in amazement. "But Gran, if you were a warrior, why did you want me to never fight anyone?" Her eyes mist over as she recalls memories long past. "Because child, the life of a warrior is rarely easy and seldom peaceful. I wanted you to have a carefree life, and never have to suffer the pain of hurting, or even killing someone else. Now, it's time to start your training." Finally, we're getting somewhere, I think excitedly. "Ok Gran, what do you want me to do?" My mind is racing a mile a minute trying to think of what all these rocks could be for. But the only response I get is one word: "Dodge!"...THUNK! "OW, Gran, what was that for?!" She laughs at my obviously faked cry of pain. "If you cannot dodge a rock thrown by an old woman, how do you expect to dodge a punch thrown by a dangerous warrior?...I guess she's right. But still, she didn't have to throw it so dang hard. That hurt more than getting shot for crying out- THUNK!..."Dodge!"
One Year Later
"Hiyah! Take that Gran!" Six months after my grandmother started throwing rocks at me, we had started actual martial arts training. To our surprise, my delight, and her curiosity, I had learned at a tremendous pace, displaying an aptitude for fighting that my grandmother could only attribute to my otherworldly origin. Now, six more months after that, we were sparring every day, and I was easily outpacing her. "Very...very good...Lynn" she pants. All her years are catching up to her, it seems. "I think...it's time we moved...to the next phase of...your training." My eyes widen in excitement. I had been waiting for this day for months. The day...when I would learn how to fly. "Am I going to fly now Gran? Am I?" The corners of her mouth turn upwards at my enthusiasm. "Sadly, learning takes more than one day, child. But yes, we are beginning along that path." Aww man, I wanted to learn to fly today! "But Gran-" "Don't you 'but Gran' me young lady," she says sharply. "If you want to learn to fly, you have to do it correctly." I'm sure the sound of my dejected sigh could be heard in Orange Star City. "Alright, what do I do first?" The look I her eyes tells me I'm in for something incredibly painful, boring, or both. "Close your eyes, and focus on your core. That isn't just your center of balance, Lynn; it's your center of energy. You can use that energy to fly, or to create energy blast to throw at you opponents, among other things. Do you understand so far?" After receiving my determined nod, she continues, "Accessing this energy is simply a matter of knowing it's there, and focusing hard enough. Everyone is capable of this, though most people never do because they do not believe they can. You know it is possible because you have seen me do it in these past few months. Now, I want you to focus on feeling that energy flow through you. Once you think you can feel it, try to bring it to the surface of your hand to form a sphere." To her utter disbelief, a small sphere of magenta energy, about the size of a baseball, forms above my upturned palm within seconds.
"Look Gran, I did it!" I shout.
"How did you do that so quickly!? That should have taken you at least five minutes!"
"I dunno, I just focused like you said, and I could feel the energy, so I pulled it into my hand. Did I do something wrong?" I ask frantically.
"No, I've just never heard of anyone creating an energy sphere with so little practice. It must be because you are not human."
"Oh. Well, I guess that's the good part of being an alien. What's next?"
"I suppose you managed that quickly enough that we can move on to learning how to shoot energy blasts. Listen closely, child. When you have mastered this technique, you will be able to attack opponents who are far away from you. But this comes at a cost: should you miss your target, innocent lives may be put at risk. This is why focus is the most important attribute when it comes to energy techniques. With practice, you will be able to control the direction of the blast even after it is launched, but for now we will simply attempt to hit a target in a straight line from you. In the same way you drew the energy from your core to your hand, you must draw it from within you and expel it in the direction of your opponent, which in this case is a tree. I will demonstrate, and then you will attempt to replicate my actions."
She stands straight and tall, unusual for her, and pantomimes drawing a bow and arrow. "HI-KAR-I YA-JIRUSHI!" As she shouts, an arrow of pure energy forms where the bow would be, and she lets it fly as she finishes the words. BOOM! A cloud of smoke and flame erupts on the other side of our training clearing, and when it clears, the tree she was aiming at doesn't exist anymore.
"And that…that is the…light arrow technique," she pants. Using that much energy clearly took a lot out of her, but she waves me off when I move closer to her.
"I'm fine, child; though I shouldn't do that too often in my old age."
"Wow Gran, that was amazing! I can't wait till I can do that!"
"Given the way you've picked up martial arts and feeling your energy, I wouldn't be surprised if you get it right on your first try. I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't, either. Go ahead, give it a go."
I set my stance, and draw my invisible bow; the fingers on my right hand brush my right cheek and I hold my left hand held firmly out in front of me, the left elbow bent slightly. Inhaling deeply, I focus as hard as I can on feeling the flow of energy in my core. "HI-KAR-I YA-JIRUSHI!" The arrow of light goes a paltry five feet before fizzling out in the dirt.
"I…I don't get it Gran. I did exactly what you did; Why didn't it work?" My enthusiasm quickly turns to frustration, and that into despondency. However, my grandmother doesn't seem disappointed or disapproving. "Your form and technique were nearly perfect, Lynn; it is your focus and inner strength that need work. Frankly, I am surprised you even managed to form an arrow on you first day of training. You should be proud of that accomplishment. Now, let us return home, and we will continue training tomorrow."
I follow behind her, trying to take her advice and be proud of myself. Being proud is hard, though, when your teacher pulverized a tree, and all I blew up was a piece of dirt and maybe a leaf. I make myself a vow that I will master that technique, and any others Gran decides to teach me. I will become the warrior she thinks I can be.
Four More Years Later
There is no feeling on this Earth that can compare to the sensation of the wind whipping past your face as you shoot through the air at breakneck speeds. It's just that amazing. Ever since I finally mastered flight two years ago, I've hardly walked anywhere. After landing in the garden and flicking a head-tail back behind my ear-hole, I softly enter the house I've lived in for the past seventeen years. Without Gran, it just feels empty now. She died last year, just after my sixteenth birthday (hatch-day). She had just lived too long. There's no cure for old age, and when the body gives out, you just have to let them go. She said she wasn't sad or afraid; she had lived a good life, and she had prepared me to be just fine on my own. And I have been for the past twelve months, though that hasn't made the pain fade much. However, I have never forgotten her words about becoming a protector of the innocent, and now I have a face for all those people I'm supposed to be guarding against evil. To that end, I've spent all of my time training in martial arts; flight; energy techniques, including the light arrow; and overall endurance. Despite this constant preparation, there has never been any cause for concern. There was one spike of power I could feel last year, but I was too busy burying Gran to investigate, and by the time I could leave the house, the power surge had faded. Now though, I can feel two massive power sources approaching from far in the distance, near East City. I quickly change from my casual attire into my combat boots; slim-fitting cargo pants; and tank top, and sling my Grandmother's katana, Asahi, across my back. After taking one last look around my childhood home, and promising myself I would return in the future, I took off for East City in a magenta blur.
A/N: Well, here we are with a grown-up (somewhat) and trained (kind of) protagonist, and next chapter will see the arrival of two particularly disagreeable Saiyans. Thanks for reading! (Tell your friends. And their friends. And their…you get the idea)