Chapter 10: The Tree of Might
The three saiyans landed at the base of the otherworldly tree, it cast a long shadow over both them and the land surrounding them. It was almost as if the tree was sucking the very light out of the landscape around them. Raditz once again tried to contact his nephew over the scouter but he received nothing but static, he swallowed the lump in his throat and felt ashamed that he actually was worried about the kid. He knew it was wrong that he let himself get attached, Gohan's presence had been oddly comforting in a strange way, he only noticed the difference now that the boy was missing once again. He tried to hail Zara but it was no use either, he only hoped that they had found each other in this mess.
"It's no use Vegeta, I can't get through to either of the kids. We are on our own at the moment." The prince cursed under his breath, "fucking fantastic, well I suppose we have no choice but to deal with whoever did this ourselves." Vegeta frowned before activating his scouter, the small device beeped in confirmation as he looked up, "I got at least five large power levels above us, but I'm getting a lot of interference from the tree, our scouters aren't going to be much use anymore." He pulled off his red scouter and let it fall to the ground before flying upwards, Nappa and Raditz glanced at each other before nodding, they copied Vegeta and followed after him. It wasn't long before the trio heard laughter, each of them glanced around looking for the source but couldn't locate it.
Slowly the three began flying upwards once again but were halted again by laughter, except this time there were three voices. Each saiyan glanced to each other in a mixture of agitation and unease, before slowly continuing there ascent. However, they had enough when they heard the laughter of five people this time, fed up with being mocked Vegeta shouted, "that is it!" Before landing on one of the many huge branches and unleashing a barrage of energy upwards through the bramble, trying to hit whoever was mocking him. Smoke clouded their view from above as Nappa and Raditz landed on the branch next to their friend. Suddenly the trio saw their enemies, five figures stood in the smoke above them, shrouded in the smoky haze. When it cleared, the three saiyans saw two short purple aliens with oversized heads, two humanoid aliens with tan skin and dark hair, and one creature that was incredibly tall and seemed to be mostly made of metal with a few patches of red skin. All of them wore scouters and armor, lounging on the branch above them.
The large humanoid alien grinned at them, clearly unfazed by the attack, "now what exactly was that for friend? It ain't wise to attack the Turles Crusher Corps so blatantly, especially since we are finishing up with this miserable excuse of a rock and getting ready to blow it to hell." At the mention of the name Turles, Raditz went pale but stayed silently. Both Vegeta and Nappa looked at him and each other in confusion, Vegeta spoke up, "can't say I'm impressed by you idiots, I've never heard of any Crusher Corps before. It isn't wise for pirates to operate in Frieza's territory, they don't tend to last very long. Especially when we get sent to deal with uppity little shits like you." The alien grinned, "oho! You've got quite the mouth on you don't you little guy? I guess I'll have to come down there and break your jaw to show you the error of your ways." Vegeta grinned in sadistic amusement, "I'd like to see you try, bitch." The five aliens dashed towards the saiyans, the small purple aliens chasing after Raditz, the cyborg went after Nappa and the two humanoid aliens stayed to deal with Vegeta.
Vegeta flipped himself over the shoulders of the giant man and his compatriot and landed back on the branch, turning he tried to sweep their legs out from under them but both men dodged his attack. Both men sent two ki blasts at his position, forcing him to jump to another branch. He was unprepared for them to suddenly appear in front of him, landing two hits to his chest and knocking him off and falling back to the ground. He stopped himself just in time to see both of them charging straight towards him, he flew forward to meet them and grabbed the shorter man before speeding up and flying straight through one of the branches, sending splinters in all directions. His ascent was suddenly halted when his other opponent grabbed him by the leg and slammed him hard into the tree trunk, dazing him momentarily. He just barely dodged under a punch directed at his head and sent a blast of ki straight through the stomach of the smaller alien, killing him. The corpse slumped over leaving Vegeta a moment to catch his breath. However, the opposite occurred when he felt a fist in his gut, "you're going to regret doing that." He was caught off guard as a second blow struck him in his jaw, he couldn't move as fists rained down on him, he tried to block what he could but he wasn't faring well against the larger opponent. Growling to himself, he braced his back against the tree and kicked the bigger man in the chest with both legs, giving him some breathing room. He dashed forward and tore a hole through the man's chest with a single punch, killing him instantly.
Raditz did his best to avoid the blows of the short aliens, but there smaller stature made them hard targets to hit. He winced in pain as a small purple fist struck him in the kidney, he managed to catch a kick that was aimed at his head and threw the small alien at his companion, causing both to fly backwards. He vaporized them both with one energy blast.
Nappa threw blow after blow at the cyborg, but the creature managed to block and dodge every strike. He sent another punch aimed at the aliens head and struck the wood behind it, cracking the bark and sending splinters flying around him. The creature's fist shot out like a piston and struck him him in the stomach, he gasped in pain as another blow struck him in the face. One punch after another followed it and eventually forced him to the ground, he rolled out of the way of a metal foot that was meant to crush his skull and a ki charged chop severed the metal appendage from it's body. Oil leaked out of the wound but the creature still attempted to fight back until Nappa tore it's head from it's body.
With the pirates dealt with all three saiyans gathered together, Vegeta grimaced as he wiped off the gore and blood onto the leg of his pants, leaving a red smear behind. "I thought these idiots would be much tougher after all that bragging." A voice he didn't recognize suddenly spoke up from behind them, "I admit that these fools weren't the strongest but they served their purpose well enough." Turning around he saw a man with dark skin and wild hair standing with his arms crossed on the opposite branch to them, he wore black and bluish gray armor with a red scouter and a tail wrapped around his waist. As soon as the stranger spotted Raditz a grin spread across his face, "well, well what a surprise to find my little brother playing soldier for Frieza with his buddies. Here I was under the impression that you died with the rest of those fools when the planet exploded."
Both Vegeta and Nappa were shocked, "Raditz… Care to tell me why you failed to mention that you had another brother that has survived after all these years?" The other saiyan stared at his brother with a hard gaze, not turning his attention away from his estranged family, "Half-brother if you must know, Turles took off a couple of years before we lost planet Vegeta, him and father never got along, he was more interested in cheating his way to the top without working to become the strongest. I always assumed he got himself killed after all this time on his own. Didn't expect him to show up again after all this time."
Turles raised an eyebrow, "is that how you remember it? I distinctly remember having to pick up father's mess and take care of you every time he went off on a mission with his buddies because he refused to do his job and train you himself. So what if I took off? The old bastard never gave two shits about us or our mothers, why should I care about him?" Raditz snarled, "How dare you?! Bardock was a great warrior and he set an example for every third class saiyan. You insult his memory by speaking ill of him." Turles shrugged, "it doesn't really matter either way, enough with the pleasantries, why are you here?"
Raditz replied, "Frieza had us reassigned to this world after our promotion, and you just happen to invade that very same planet? I doubt it's a coincidence." Turles smiled coyly," very clever little brother, I'm impressed that you aren't so dense as to miss that. My employer isn't pleased after what you did to Tarkus, he's paid me very handsomely to kill the lot of you, not to mention I get the opportunity to use the Tree of Might on another world. It's nothing personal brother, but I'll have to kill you."
Raditz snarled as he and the other two saiyans fell into fighting stances, "you're welcome to try, brother. But you're employer is going to be disappointed when we send your head back to him in a box." Turles grinned," you are more than welcome to try."
The three saiyans dashed forward, each one threw a blow at the pirate but Turles dodged all three. A kick struck Vegeta in the chin, sending him flying back, dodging under another punch from Nappa he struck the older man in the chest before grabbing him by the legs and hurling him at Raditz. Both saiyans flew back and struck the trunk of the tree just in time for Vegeta to bounce back and land a blow on Turles' cheek, forcing the taller man to take a step back. He threw one blow after another at the saiyan, a well placed kick sent Turles skidding back off the branch and closer to the ground. Vegeta chased after him but couldn't anticipate Turles grabbing one of the branches on his descent before swinging himself at the prince, Vegeta gasped as a kick struck him in the chest and sending him flying backwards. He struck the tree trunk and fell face first onto a branch, clutching his stomach in agony as he was stunned. Turles used the momentum to swing back up onto the branch and looked up just in time for Nappa and Raditz's next attack.
"DOUBLE SUNDAY!" "BREAK CANNON!" A purple and a blue energy wave cascaded towards Turles, the two attacks combined into one large multicolored beam as it made its way to its target. The pirate smacked the ki attack back towards them, the two men were dodged out of the way but were still caught in the blast, burning them as they were thrown off the tree. A good portion of the tree trunk was blasted off as well sending wood shrapnel flying as well, cutting both men up as they fell towards the ground. Turles floated back up towards where Vegeta had landed, the prince had worked himself up to a kneeling position while still clutching his stomach. Blood trickled down from his lips, "what was that about sending my head back to my employer, prince?"
Vegeta winced, "fuck off you arrogant prick!" Vegeta extended a palm and a blast of ki consumed Turles and caused an explosion that sent Vegeta flying backwards and striking the tree trunk. He slid down, his head bouncing off of the rough wood, "is that the best you can do? If so, I am very disappointed in you prince Vegeta. Getting defeated by a third class so easily like this." The smoke cleared showing Turles standing unharmed other than a few scuffs on his armor, the taller saiyan grabbed Vegeta by the throat and lifted him up, holding him over the edge of the tree branch. Vegeta choked, trying desperately to get air,"how… Is this possible? I am meant to be the strongest! What have you done to get this strong?" Turles grinned,"another gift from the Tree of Might, this is more than just what measly training can accomplish. I devour the life forces of entire planets Vegeta, you have no hope against me." Turles dropped him and Vegeta was sent plummeting back towards the ground, he tried to stop himself but a ki blast hit him square in the chest, speeding up his descent and exploded on impact as soon as he hit the ground.
The three saiyans laid crippled on the ground, how could Turles become so strong all on his own? "I must admit that this little reunion has been amusing but I think it's time to end this. When you reach Hell, Raditz. Do me a favor and tell our father that I said hello." Turles clasped his hands together, electricity sparked along his arms, when he separated his palms a small orange ring of ki had formed in the center. The ring floated forward, aimed right where the saiyans were laying, Turles closed his fists and shouted out, "KILL DRIVER!" The orange ring expanded outwards and grew to a massive size before flying right at the three saiyans. The ring struck right where all three saiyans were laying sending up a cloud of dust and smoke as a fiery explosion consumed the landscape below.
When the smoke cleared, Turles was surprised, "Raditz was stood over his two companions, a ki shield surrounded all three men. Just barely protecting them from the flames and energy, his legs were shaking as the bubble faded away but he was still standing. Turles raised an eyebrow before floating down, standing right in front of his kin. "You surprise me Raditz, I was sure that would have kill all three of you. You've gotten stronger than I've expected." Raditz was panting heavily, hunched over from exhaustion and sweating profusely. He was nearly out of energy and still bleeding profusely, his armor was shredded by both the ki and the tree. His hair was matted with blood and sweat, but he still stood protectively over his friends.
"Sorry… Guess you'll… Have to get your hands dirty… Brother." Turles grinned sadistically, a punch struck Raditz in the stomach, sending him flying upwards, Turles sped ahead and kicked Raditz back to the ground. He reappeared just ahead of him and kneed him in the chest, Raditz crumpled forward and fell face first into the dirt. A boot drove his head further into the mud, clouds gathered overhead and soon the rain started to fall. Turles was silent for a moment before pointing his hand at Raditz before whispering one word, "die." A column of ki burst upward around Raditz causing an explosion around the two men.
Turles raised his foot off of Raditz's head, the younger man laid in the dirt motionless. However, Turles was shocked when two ki blasts struck him in the chest. Knocking him backwards, looking up he noticed that both Nappa and Vegeta had regained consciousness and were flying towards him at a fast pace. He blocked both of their fists directed at his face and began dodging and blocking the cascade of fists directed at him. He backhanded Vegeta and swept Nappa's legs out from under him, before the larger man could react, Turles wrapped himself around one of the giant saiyans legs and bent it back with a large amount of force until it snapped. Nappa screamed in pain just before Vegeta grabbed Turles and threw him up into the air, a huge wave of ki was sent upwards at him, Turles caught the energy with his hands, the beam threatened to overwhelm him but he held on for dear life. He grimaced as he rolled out of the way, the energy scorching his back as it flew past him and exploded in the air above him.
He flew back down at an extreme pace and Vegeta flew up to meet him, fist struck fist sending out a shockwave, each of their blows met over and over causing repeated shockwaves as both men fought in the air. Vegeta finally gained an upper hand and slammed Turles downwards before chasing after him, he grabbed the man around the waist and sped up towards the ground. Turles slammed his fists into Vegeta's back trying to dislodge him but he refused to let go. Both saiyans struck the ground, creating a large crater, while Turles was momentarily stunned, Vegeta repeatedly punched him over and over again trying his best to knock him unconscious. However his efforts were fruitless, Turles grabbed him by the throat and stood up before throwing him as hard as he could towards the tree. Vegeta cried out in agony as he struck the trunk so hard that he became lodged into the wood. His head finally fell forward, he was out of energy and both Nappa and Raditz were down for the count. Turles trudged towards him from both pain and exhaustion until he stood right in front of the prince, trying to catch his breath as he got ready to finish him off, "it's over prince, I've won." Vegeta looked up in despair, however something caught his eye. A wide smile broke out on his face as he began laughing, "HAHAHAHA! You might have been right a few minutes ago Turles, but there's one thing you haven't considered yet." Turles raised an eyebrow, "and what would that be?" He turned around as he heard two people land behind him, "the three of us aren't the last saiyans." Two saiyan children looked over the devastation of the battlefield, Gohan and Zara had arrived.
Power Levels:
Turles: 100,000
Vegeta: 30,000
Nappa: 20,000
Gohan: 15,000
Raditz: 14,000
Zara: 6,000