Chapter 04 – God of Destruction.
An ethereal glow had surrounded one of the mysterious aliens, surrounding his cat-like body with a deep purple glow. Buu flew at him enraged, determined to keep the stranger away from anymore food and to make him pay for insulting him.
The air before him repelled him, Buu unable to control his movement as he sped dangerously back, landing hard against the surface of a nearby lake over the perimeter of Capsule Corp's walls. The spray from his collision was thrown a good hundred metres into the air, soaking any unlucky residents currently in the park!
"W-Wait! Lord Birus!" Vegeta hurriedly interjected.
His cry went unheard as the God of Destruction raised his hand and gathered up energy. "This planet will be destroyed!"
"Attack!" Kame Sennin roared out.
She didn't need telling twice. Having heard what this alien proposed to do, Corset made a start towards him. One rogue movement of her eyes to the left made her feet stumble and send her off on a tangent towards Soba, who was struggling to stand in the terrific force of Birus' ki. Latching onto an arm and holding it over her shoulders, she kept his footing secure as best she could, keeping an eye out for anyone else who seemed to be struggling. A couple of flashes beside her headed for Birus: Eighteen, Tenshinhan and Piccolo were on the attack.
Birus teleported. Eighteen was knocked unconscious.
Tenshinhan closed in. Birus caught his punch with nothing but a pair of chopsticks. In a flash, he'd tossed the three-eyed tower-of-a-warrior into the ground, Tenshinhan buried under a rubble of destroyed wiring, pipes and concrete. Spouts of water began shooting out of the drains nearby, some even bursting through unstable ground.
Piccolo's kick was parried. A dangerously sharp drop in his ki synchronised with the Namekian falling limp to the ground set Corset's heart racing faster. She could feel her forehead was damp, her breathing had increased and there was a sense of serious worry coming over her. Before she could even think to rush over to Piccolo and the others, Birus had vanished and was now hovering over the park.
A cry from Gohan shook her from her fear as he took off after Birus.
"… What the hell is going on?" Soba's voice sounded dry. "Who is that guy?"
"I'll explain later," Corset released him from her hold and took a couple of steps away from him.
"No – you'll explain right now," Soba took two steps forward, suddenly finding his serious-face and replacing his look of horror. "You know something."
"I've only just found out something that might be important," Corset corrected him. "Ask my dad, ok? I don't think he's jumping into this fight any time soon."
"Corset!" Soba shouted out, unable to stop her in time as his girlfriend shot off the ground. Even if he had managed to successfully grab her, she'd have probably dragged him up into the air with her… and he hated heights. Irritated, Soba let out a small grunt before hurrying over towards Vegeta who seemed to be rooted to the spot. He looked worried. It sent an uncomfortable feeling through Soba.
Jumping straight into her Super Saiyan Two form wasn't the easiest thing she'd done but it was over in a flash. Birus had Gohan and Buu hanging in his grasp, repeatedly cracking their heads together with a sickening look of satisfaction upon his face. In a blink he'd knocked Gohan back with a kick and dropped Buu back into the lake, eyes dead-set on the incoming Saiyan.
Time slowed again.
Corset's eyes followed Gohan as he shot past her. He'd acquired a form to take control of his hidden ability thanks to the old Kaioshin. He was currently in that form. It had been a form that had been more than a match for the lean, tall Buu prior to him absorbing Gotenks and Piccolo. It was a form that Corset herself would hate to have to fight Gohan in and one she regarded with the highest esteem. So it came as a shock to the system to see Gohan – in that form – knocked out so easily. What the hell was she about to fight?
Time returned to normal speed.
Corset teleported.
Birus kicked out into thin air.
It was like she'd materialised from nothing; his foot was wedged so deeply into her solar plexus. Time seemed to have slowed down painfully. It was as if she was able to assess the damage in the space of an hour; a sharp pain was gathering around her stomach, the wind was being forced from her lungs. There was at least one broken rib. A blur of purple knocked the sight from her and she felt her head tug on her neck, lurching back and dragging her body through the air.
She collided with the Capsule Corp perimeter wall and crashed to the ground with a heavy crack, throwing up brick, tiles and grass.
It was only because Vegeta'd taken off without a word and Soba'd followed him as best he could with his eyes; head had turned enough to see the sudden explosion of brick and lawn just to the right of where he was looking. The noise made him and several bystanders jump, something dropped in the pit of his stomach and made him dash forward, ignoring Bulma's cries for everyone to stop fighting in the middle of her thirty-eighth birthday celebrations. (He was sure Corset'd told him she was older than that!)
Up above, Vegeta was receiving a battering from Birus. Down amongst the crowd, Goten and Trunks were getting ready to fuse into Gotenks.
'Don't be dead, don't be dead, don't be dead,' repeating those words in his mind as he approached, Soba skidded onto his knees and placed two fingers on her neck. The weight in his stomach relaxed as he felt her pulse still strong, though she wore a tight grimace on her bloodied face, a dark bruise and lump creeping over her forehead. In the background Soba could hear other cries; Videl and Chichi in particular calling Gohan and trying to wake him up. Dende was suddenly very busy running over to each casualty and replenishing their life force with his healing powers. He looked up to the sky to see Vegeta be knocked several hundred metres away from them, chased after by the purple cat-like fighter. "What the hell is happening…?" He muttered.
Sounds were coming from the back of her throat; Soba dug his arms underneath her shoulder blades and pulled her up slightly, "Come on, you're ok. You're gonna be fine, Dende's almost over here." He wasn't sure if it was more reassuring for himself or for her but Soba was relieved when Dende finally made his way over towards them.
"Fusion HA!" The synchronised voices of Goten and Trunks off to the side pre-warned Soba of the blinding light that suddenly flashed across his vision. Baffled and disorientated, he struggled to make out who was responsible as Gotenks launched himself over towards the fight, charging up into his Super Saiyan form.
"Sorry to have taken so long," Dende apologised as he reached the pair, kneeling down and extending his arms towards Corset. The pale glow slowly encased his hands, reaching out and engulfing Corset as Dende set out to heal her. The job was done in a matter of seconds, Soba relieved to see Corset's eyes open.
"Good, you're alright," He sighed, relieved. "Is now a good time to tell me what's going on?"
"… What's happening with Birus?" Corset asked, sitting up and making her way out of his arms. "Who's fighting him?"
"Your father and Gotenks," Dende responded.
"Whoever that guy is, he's unbelievably strong," Gohan had emerged at their side, apparently miraculously sober now. "I've never felt anything like it. Not even Buu matched up to this guy."
"His energy is bizarre," Corset agreed. "… It's almost undetectable until he hits you."
Soba glanced at the woman, noticing she was either shivering or shaking. It unnerved him to see her like this.
There was a terrific roar as a dark plume of smoke rose from the treeline. The plummet in her father and Gotenk's energies forced her to her feet, made her rush forwards against Soba's protests, joined by Gohan as the two made their way over to the rising tower of smoke. Passing over a short garden wall, Corset spotted the trio – now a group of four as Gotenks' had defused. The boys were down for the count; her father standing before Birus, hunched over and holding onto his left arm. 'What the hell is going on, Dad? Why is this guy here?' Corset cursed their luck, cautiously approaching the boys just in case the cat-warrior lunged for them.
"We should get the boys to safety," Gohan warned, reaching Goten and bringing his younger brother into his arms. Neither of the boys were conscious, both had taken an alarming amount of damage from however many hits they'd been dealt. Corset was almost certain it hadn't been that many; she'd only been hit a couple of times before she'd been rendered useless. Just what the hell had their planet unwillingly walked into?
"That's enough!"
Corset double-took, almost dropping Trunks as she realised her mother had approached Birus and her father. "What…?" She couldn't shake off the feeling that something was about to go drastically wrong. Flashbacks of losing her mother a mere four years ago to the evil form of Buu raced through her mind – Chichi's actions against the evil Buu suddenly made a reappearance as her mother extended her arm outwards and whipped it across, slapping Birus across the face. The sound echoed in Corset's head, ringing in her ears as she realised exactly what was about to happen.
Too late, too slow and too far away to step in her mother's place.
The echoing slap of Birus' paw-like hand against her mother's delicate face broke her. The movement of her mother's limp body falling, crashing to the ground in a dead faint, slashing a new mental scar within the demi Saiyan, the sound of her mother striking the hard concrete triggering off her worst fears.
Then the build-up of energy – yet it wasn't her energy. She was further sent into shock as her father howled out like a wounded animal, "THAT'S MY BULMA!" His ki bolted, unleashing itself from its restraints as those in the immediate vicinity were blown away, trees uprooted, water from nearby fountains blown completely from its confines out onto the rattling paving slabs. With a flash, Vegeta had launched an all-out-assault against the perpetrator, launching Birus clean into the sky.
As her father's fury dominated the fight, Corset raced over to her mother, shuffling Trunks into one arm and holding her mother's limp body in the other, launching herself off the ground and straight towards Dende. She could just about sense life in her mother's body, determined not to let it snuff itself out. Numbness still reigned, yet she found a single tear rolling down her cheek. Was it the shock of seeing her mother knocked aside as if she were nothing? Perhaps. But she suspected it had something more to do with her father's reaction, his raw, emotional reaction and the action he was now taking. She'd never sensed power like it come from him. It almost reminded her of Gohan's abilities, dragging immeasurable power from nowhere and finding the strength to beat down the cause of pain.
"Vegeta's power is incredible!" Krillin exclaimed, voice barely heard over the howling of the wind the fight above was causing. "I've never sensed anything like this come from him before."
"He may have even surpassed Goku in power…" Master Roshi added.
Corset gently set her brother and mother next to Goten, waiting wordlessly for Dende to finish off with the miniature Goku and tend to her family. She barely registered the hand that fell upon her shoulder, barely felt the warmth of Gohan's hand upon her skin. He knew what this was doing to her; he'd witnessed her struggle over the years, had seen what the aloof, uncaring façade her father had shown them over the years had done to her. So he knew just how much this moment meant to his oldest friend. "He's doing it for your mother."
"Yeah…" She mumbled in response.
Vegeta roared as a kick sent Birus spinning uncontrollably across the sky. The Saiyan Prince's hands joined together by the palms, held in a familiar stance to those who bore witness to his fight against Cell – a move Krillin had seen before. His ki still barrelling through his veins like frenzied lava, gathering in his palms and forming into a bright yellow ball.
"Quick! Everyone, get down!" Krillin hollered. "Vegeta's gonna fire off his Final Flash!" He latched onto his wailing daughter tightly, Eighteen shielding her with her own body. Corset clamped hold of her mother's wrist, glancing quickly over her shoulder to see Soba make it over to her in time, arm wrapping around his waist as he crouched down beside her.
"What's a Final Flash?" He asked loudly over the howling winds, which had picked up tremendously under the pressure.
"Whatever Dad fires off!" Corset replied. "Hold on!"
"FINAL FLASH!" Vegeta bellowed. The gathering energy burst forwards in a terrifying, wide beam of light. The atmosphere went haywire, winds strengthening further, tornadoes forming under the energy of the air as lighting flashed across the skies. The wind dragged anything it could from the ground, tossing objects hundreds of metres from their original placings. The garden became unrecognisable, the windows of nearby buildings shattering under the pressure, sending razor-sharp projectiles to zoom across the immediate area. In the city around them, people were shrieking in panic, some thrown from their feet, whilst vehicles were thrown off balance and sent in all directions, striking buildings and others. The city was an absolute mess by the time the blinding flash of the attack had started to fade, the wind dropping as suddenly as it'd started, clouds gradually dispersing across the sky.
High above them, Vegeta hovered exhausted from the energy he'd expended, beads of sweat trickling down his face. His eyes faced ahead, looking through the dense light of his attack, searching for any sign that would suggest Birus was still around. His body had been exhausted, his energy reserves dwindled. The Prince knew what to expect, even without being able to detect his foe. This was the God of Destruction he was dealing with; even with his sudden discovery of hidden strength, he knew it wouldn't have been enough… But, perhaps it'd been enough to make the god think twice.
The overwhelming moment passed. Birus was inches from his foe, launching a fist clean into Vegeta's stomach. The tables had turned once again, Vegeta suddenly being battered about helplessly, his energy draining further as the cat-like fighter dealt hit after hit after hit.
Down below, what was left of the garden was in ruins. The stage had been completely destroyed and had collapsed in on itself, the presents scattering somewhere beyond the perimeter of the complex. The people, however, had somehow managed to hold their ground, several shields having gone up to protect those who weren't as capable of withstanding the force Vegeta's attack had set off. One by one, the energy shields dropped and the spectators gradually rose to their feet.
"That was insane!" Krillin huffed trying to gain back much-needed oxygen. "Good thing we have Piccolo here to come up with ideas, I wouldn't have thought to put up a shield if you hadn't insisted."
Piccolo missed his opportunity to criticise Krillin for his lack of thinking, too busy with watching the battle above them. Vegeta took another strike to the face, forcing him to barrel-roll straight down to earth, landing with a heavy thud to the concrete and tossing loosened shards skywards alongside dust.
"Dad!" Corset dashed forwards, caught by the wrist by Gohan who kept her firmly rooted to the spot.
"There's nothing we can do," He frowned. "None of us stand a chance."
"I know, but if you don't mind, I wanna at least help my father out," Corset grunted.
"This planet will be destroyed," Birus declared, slowly descending towards the spot Vegeta had collided, feet landing gently upon the ground. "Whis, we're leaving. Hurry up and finish with your business so I can destroy this planet."
The Saiyan rose unsteadily to meet his opponent, unstable with the damage he'd taken. His voice was heard but inaudible to those further back; it was met with a simple prod to the forehead from the taller fighter, Vegeta crashing motionless to the ground.
"It was truly a shame that one of you ended up being the Super Saiyan God," Birus mused, extending one hand out towards the ground.
"S-Super Saiyan… God?" Gohan muttered intrigued.
"I've never heard of it," Corset responded quietly.
"What's he doing?" Chichi asked, a quiver in her voice. "… Is he…?"
Birus was. His hand was palm-flat, gathering energy pointed towards the ground.
"Wait, Birus!"
That was a voice they all recognised – and Corset was very much relieved to see and hear the owner of said voice make his appearance. Goku'd always had a way with dramatic entrances, suddenly materialising from nothing and standing between the group and their guest. Instant Transmission.
"Goku!" Krillin gasped with relief.
"Sorry it took so long, guys," Goku apologised to those behind him, focus turning once more to the fighter towering over Vegeta's unconscious form. "I know you're the God of Destruction but please, spare the Earth just this once!"
Piccolo loudly inhaled, a cold sweat sweeping down his back. "… So it really is true. Vegeta was right."
"What's one of those?" Goten asked.
"… Piccolo?" Gohan was alarmed with the look of pure horror upon his old mentor's face. "… Is this guy another one of the higher gods that look after our part of the universe?"
"Y-Yes… Only…" Piccolo's mouth had gone dry.
"Only I'm one of the gods who go about destroying," Birus interjected, his large ears twitching. "You've all heard of Kaio and the Kaioshin from what I understand. Well, I'm at the same level of importance as the latter. Where there is creation, there must also be destruction. New things cannot be made if old things are not destroyed."
"He's planning to destroy Earth," Goku frowned. "… But I think I know a way to stop you."
"Oh?" Birus responded intrigued. "So, does that mean you've worked out how to become a Super Saiyan God?"
'They keep on mentioning this Super Saiyan God… but what is it?' Corset pondered. She couldn't help but wonder if this was one of the other gods Goku had met during his time in Otherworld. If they lived through this, she'd have to pester him about this later on.
"I haven't, not yet," Goku responded, "-But I know I'll find a way to become this Super Saiyan God if you give us more time. Please, spare the Earth this once and I won't disappoint you, I will find a way to do it and I have a plan which should hopefully help us to find out."
It was hard to read Birus' facial expressions, Corset found. She would probably have just as much success trying to read the faces of her grandparent's pets. In any case, she didn't want the Earth to be destroyed (again) and hoped that whatever this Super Saiyan God was meant to be, Goku's words would be more than enough to keep this God of Destruction's interest piqued and would save the Earth from an immanent fate-deciding attack.
"… Fine," Birus agreed. "I will give you a little more time… But if this plan fails, I will destroy Earth."
"Thank you," Goku smiled, spinning on his heels and dashing towards Bulma, who had recovered from her ordeal thanks to Dende. "Hey Bulma, you still have the full set of Dragonballs, don't you?"
"Of course," Bulma nodded.
"Do you mind if I use them?" Goku asked. "I wanna ask Shenron something."
"As long as it's to do with getting rid of this rude idiot, I'm fine with that," Bulma responded, digging out the Dragonball Radar from a remarkably well-hidden pocket in her dress. "Here, go at it."
"Thank you," Goku smiled, taking the radar from her and switching it on. To his confusion, the balls weren't exactly together on the screen as expected. "… Didn't you say you had all seven together?" Bulma took a couple of steps forward to glance down upon the screen as Goku continued, "They're not exactly far apart but I'm not sure what's going on here… Is it broken?"
"It could only have been caused by Vegeta's attack," Piccolo pointed out. "You weren't here when it happened."
"If you would be so kind as to hurry up before I change my mind?" Birus interjected. Hurriedly, Goku dashed over in the direction the radar led him in whilst the others remained uncomfortably rooted to the spot. Eventually Birus left, preferring to follow Goku on his search.
"… So who exactly is this guy…?" Soba asked once the man was quite some distance away. "… and why is he trying to blow up Earth?"
"He's a God of Destruction," Corset responded. "The Hakaioshin – he's a really important person within the universe. There are gods who look over the planets; he's one of the highest ranked gods you can come across from what I understand."
"Ugh, I remember you trying to teach me this before," Soba rubbed his hair wearisomely. "Never mind, just tell me why he wants to kill us all."
"Comes with the job title," Corset responded wryly. Movement from her right caught her eye; Dende had rushed over to heal her father and now he was rising to his feet, Corset relieved to see he was alright for the most part.
The group gradually strode back into the now-littered garden, making a small ring around Goku as he set the Dragonballs out in position upon the ground. "Arise, Shenron!"
The familiar flash of light bolted free from the glowing orbs, launching itself in a single beam straight for the skies above.