Jets flew by the airship as Piccolo was looking at the screen that Piano was showing him. It showed a map of the Earth most of it with the Royal yellow covering majority of Earth with a small amount of the Earth covered by the KRA in black.
"You see Lord Father a good 90% of the planet is ruled by the Royal Kingdom a Constitutional Monarchy with its figure head being King Furry. Whose family was mysteriously brought to power centuries ago, when the U.N. elected his great great grandfather king, not sure how that worked but it happened somehow."
Piccolo dismissively said, "Sounds magical."
"Quite magical indeed? So, he in theory rules the world. But in practice with the guy elected Prime Minster by the U.N. assemble being the one who actually calls the shots."
"The would-be king on the mantle."
"It would seem so."
Mai rushing from the lower deck came up interrupting them and said while panicking. "My Lord King Piccolo we have a problem the Royal Airforce is about to shoot us down!"
"So what?" Said as two missiles slammed into the airship exploding. The ship lost power as it was rocked and the planes that flew by. The airship started dropping like a rock as it was exploding.
Pilaf gang were in a panic as they ran around looking for a way off the ship. But neither Piano nor Piccolo seemed worried in the least. Piccolo merely sighed as a bubble of green tinted energy surrounded him then Piano and the Pilaf gang. The gang stopped panicking as the bubble burst through the roof of the falling airship.
Piccolo as an afterthought pointed a finger at the jet fighters and they exploded. He didn't even bother to look at the destruction as the bubble began to move towards the city.
The city which had fireworks and a stream of noise coming from it. Its festive atmosphere almost seemed to be a feature of the place as they came closer.
"Time to show these tiny minded people what a real King looks like."
The atmosphere was festive as Bill made his way through the crowd. The people were squishing into one another as he made his way to get closer to one of the gates. It was already hot, and the people were making it worse. He knew he wasn't dressed for the summer, but this was ridiculous.
He knew he couldn't get too close though. He knew how crazy this all was. The cops would probably arrest him thinking he was trying to kill the king and won't believe him anymore then his bosses did.
Suno on the other hand was standing in place in the steps leading up to the big entrance to the Palace. The snow flowers in her hands and an innocent smile on her face. She felt quite warm in her nation dress made for the cold, but she couldn't care less.
Chi-Chi had given back her family something which she could never repay. But today she felt like she was doing something for peace. She thought about how this would show the Ribbons and the monster that led them. That peace would stand.
But as she was thinking of all this would do to promote the peace, a nearby skyscraper exploded on one of its sides and fell down. The atmosphere changed in seconds to shock and fear.
It was then that the bubble of Piccolo arrived in front of the main gate of the Palace. The space for the motorcade was quickly taken up by him.
The crowd in a panic began to run as the dust and the smoke of the collapse building flooded the city. They fell over each other in their panic and trampled over each other.
The guards and cops at the gate then impotently tried to stop Piccolo, but in a wave of his hand Piccolo dismember them. While he sliced open the gate to the palace.
Seeing all of this horror the pilaf gang bolted with Piccolo not even noticing. He was now far too caught up in his moment of triumph. The three all ran in different directions. All of them had come to the conclusion that this had all had gone too far but hadn't talked about the plan, so they just scattered.
Explosions started going off as the guards started mobilizing and trying to stop Piccolo. Suno and the other flowers girls made a run for it as the grounds became a warzone. Only to find themselves trapped at the bar of the palace due to the fighting. The street and freedom within sight but cold metal in their way.
The streets had been filled with stampeding panicking people but that had all sort of cleared out of the area by now as it was the Palace they were fleeing from. The girls were trying to get through the gaps found them too small they yelled out to find no one listening except one.
Mai who had been running for her life stopped when she saw them. She ran towards them and in a rushed looked at the situation. There was no way she was going to fit them through the bars or break through the bars. The only way out for the girls was up.
Mai nervously said to them "Girls stop panicking I'm going to try to help." She slid her hands through the bars and cupped her hands on the other side as a fist. "One at a time girl use me as a step."
The girls through were in a panic except Suno and all tried climbing on to her. It was way too much weight and nearly broke her arm and back as she shrieked in pain. Before they could break anything, she withdrew her arms.
Mai was in tears as the girls were all begging to her and she had no idea what to try next. She had really wish she had gone to the gym more. She wasn't going to leave them that was sure but what could she do?
A pained voice from behind her said "It could work just help hold me in place."
She looked to see a bloodied eye patch wear man. It was Bill he had be trampled at one point by the crowds. His nose had been stepped on and was bleeding and broken. He tossed aside his trench coat as he put his hands through the bar.
Mai ran over to help hold his arms in place as the children grabbed ahold and climbed onto his arms. Bill sort grunted with all the weight on his arms. The girl in his arms tried to climb only to find the still too smooth. She tried jumping up to reach a bar near the top horizontal to the ground only to find it too far way.
She fell back down on Bill's arms and he gasped in pain as a crack was heard. His teeth clamped down to the point if his tongue had been in between it would have been chopped off.
Mai said to the girl to "Get down! This isn't going to work. We need to try something else." And tried to pull him back but he resisted.
Bill stubbornly said, "This is the only shot we got."
Mai angrily barked out "How will breaking your arm help anyone?!"
He removed his arms in a huff. She was right but he could think of any other ideas right know.
She looked at him and asked. "Do you have a gun?"
"Yeah… those bars were made to take a missile blast and a car crash; a bullet would just bounce of it."
"What are we going to do?"
"You could get on my shoulders and we could try hand them up and get them over that way." The ground shook as the fight raged on.
"We'd need even ground for that right?"
"Worth a try at least."
Eight interrupted the two and said to them "Maybe I could help."
Bill and Mai looked at the Frankenstein's monster creature and both looked a little stun at its sight. Eight pushed them gentle to the side and then bent the bars like they were made of putty to the two's shock.
The girls streamed up like a flood thanking Eight. Eight turned however and bowed to Bill and Mai saying to them "Thank you, both so much for trying to help my friend and these girls. I'm glad to see that good people still are around."
To that neither Mai nor Bill were willing to look Eight in the eyes. Both having come to the conclusion that this man just simply didn't really know them all too well. Mai's mind went to the fact she helped release Piccolo. Bill's to his failure to kill Kakarrot and that women on that mission.
Bill piped up and said to him "We need to get somewhere safe and I know a place."
The door to the lab burst open, as Gero was looking over Kakarrot who looked like a mummy with all of the bandages over his body. Kakarrot seemed frustrated with his Grandpa's examination.
Kakarrot annoyed said to him "I'm fine Grandpa. I'm a Saiyan I can take some wounds."
Gero incredulously "Wounds! Wounds! You died son for a whole minute!"
"Well I'm not dead anymore."
Gero with more panic to it said "You don't understand. Son if you had died. This would have all been for nothing. All of this work all of the planning would have come for naught. What would the point of this had been for without you?"
Kakarrot turned his eyes from Gero in what could be called shame, as he looked to the floor. Gero hugged him tightly as the mad doctor was now crying.
"It wouldn't matter if I conqueror the whole Kamidamn Earth. It wouldn't matter if you weren't there. You are my only reason for continuing. In this cruel world that has taken everything from me. I can't lose my only solace in this world left my son."
Kakarrot calmingly said to him "And you won't. What doesn't kill only makes me stronger. And I will only get stronger from this."
This seemed to reassure Gero who calmed down, but the moment was interrupted when the door again opened as an officer said to them "Sir's you might want to see what's on the TV!"
They turned on the lab TV to see King Furry on the TV some blood on his coat and a shell-shocked look on his face.
"I have some fantastic news for you citizens. Effective immediately I will be stepping down from my throne."
Kakarrot smiling saying to the officer "Get Copper down here immediately."
King Furry continuing while sweating "Due to my weakness and feeble age I will be stepping aside in favor for someone a smarter, kinder" Said trying not to eat his tongue. "per… being that will be taking over my throne. I'm sure he will show you the benevolenc… It's all lies people! You must all resist…"
Before he continuing a green hand came and grabbed him by the throat and Piccolo said, "You should have stuck to the script." He tossed him away as the camera came to his face and he smiled at it in his cruel grin.
"Greeting folks. My name is King Piccolo. Your ancestors might have known me as the 'DEVIL' and I happen to be your new lord and master." He chuckled. " Now I know you might all be a bit frightened by my conquest, but you needn't worry for I already have an outline on how I plan to rule all of you, and I think you'll like it. I have decided that I plan to revise your freedom. Yes, I know last king talk a bit about freedom, but did he really believe in it? No, the answer is no. I believe in freedom all of your freedoms. For far too long you have this tyrannical sword known as 'order' has been hanging over your head nagging you, oppressing you. Which I'm going to remove. You are all free hence forth all laws are abolish. There are no laws anymore whether it be about killing, rape, stealing or vandalism. My beleaguered citizens called criminals by an oppressive world I call on you to rise up. The old order is dead, time to give it a Viking funeral. I want to see blood on the streets and cities on fire. I need you all to give me big old fashion purge up in here! Go wild break some shit and keep your ears open. I'll be calling you all up soon."
Copper who had been silence watching the same broadcast spoke up. "You called on me Lord Commander."
"Yes. Go and deploy the KRA. I think a land grab is in order General."
"They won't be able to stop the monster."
"Did I say send them to Central City? No send them to whether strategic place we've wanted and march them in. But don't send them as conquers but as liberators restoring order to a world now in complete fucking anarchy.
Copper heiled and marched away. Gero looked at confusion at his son.
"I'd hate to admit it, but this works perfectly. The Royal army has no leadership and we just became everyone's best friend. Thusly in the world of chaos we look for a knight in shining armor the hero of the hour come to save the day. The world will be mine yet."
Tien lying on the ground woke to hearing his own name being said repeatedly. His body ached but he quickly found that he had been patched up. He raised his head to see his friends rushing towards him. By the looks of it they had just arrived.
A quick thought jumped into his head of who bandaged him up if his friends had just arrived? He looked to his side to see that there were two fleshly dug graves next to him. He couldn't help but come to a stark conclusion of who had done all of this.
"Tien what the hell happen?!" She had said almost shouting in her panic.
Her question hit Tien like a ton of bricks. In his delirium he had forgot who were in those graves. Tien want the world around him to just explode. Launch and his Master were dead.
How in the hell could he face his friends? He had failed them; he had failed them all. He felt the urge to run from them. He tried to get to his feet only to find himself still too weak to stand.
Chiaotzu balling his eyes out came to him and hugged him with the others not after behind. It sounded like he was trying to ask Tien a question, but it was incoherent with all of his sobbing.
"Don't try to get up."
"Let us help you."
Chiaotzu let go so that Bulma and Yamcha could help him up. They picked him up and Yamcha put Tien's arm around his shoulder letting Tien use him as a crutch. Tien hated feeling this weak and useless but there was nothing he could do.
Oolong bluntly said "Geez Tien it looks like you went through a shredded. Piccolo must have really kicked your ass."
Bulma smacked him as hard as she could on the head and screeched at him. "Show some Kamidamn compassion Piggy! Tien just took on a space demon! " He yelped in pain as he muttered something about, that he meant nothing by it.
She in a fury said, "The nerve of some people."
"What happened man?" Yamcha asked as if Tien was some fragile doll that he was afraid would break if moved too quickly.
Tien shifted his eyes he didn't what to look at them. They were already treating him like he was a broken thing. He was a failure he knew that. He just hoped they had the good sense to abandon him.
"Launch and Master are dead..." The others gasped. Bulma started to tear up. Tien could feel Yamcha tense up like he was readying for a fight. "Piccolo killed them."
Yamcha in pure disgust "That scumbag!"
"They are buried behind me." Their eyes turned to see the graves.
Bulma broke down crying saying "First Krillin now them."
Puar with a spark of hope said, "Don't cry guys we can always use the dragon balls to wish them back."
They nodded in agreement but could help but all still feel sad. Tien then felt that burning question coming back to his mind.
"How did you know where I was?"
"We thought you called us?"
"What?"
"You sent a distress signal from your jet, right?"
"No."
"Right. You were on the ground unconscious before we arrived then who could have sent it?"
Tien knew he just didn't feel like saying it. First, he saved Chiaotzu now himself. It only added to the dishonor to all of this. Worse yet it was hard to tell his motives. They had been friends, but Tien was sure he had burned that bridge. So why did he do all of this? Did he hope to win him back to his side? Did he really have a sense of honor?
Chiaotzu who had calmed down a bit by this point spoke up as the others were starting to notice Tien deep in thought. "We'll figure it out later. For now, Tien needs help."
The others nodded in agreement while Tien recognized what he was doing. Chiaotzu looked at him with sympathetic eyes and Tien sighed. Chiaotzu had to have had read his mind so he knew.
Yamcha started moving him to the plane as Bulma went to recover the bodies. Soon their bodies were loaded into capsules and they were off. As they started to fill Tien in on Piccolo's apocalyptic broadcast.
As they were flying over a city, they could see smoke and fire. Tien knew it can't have been the only city. The world was as he looked descending into unbridled chaos. He knew what the world now needed more than ever was a hero.
The lid to the pot opened as Korin looked on. Chi-Chi then emerged with determination seemingly carved into her face. "Hand me a Nimbus."
Up next the end of the King Piccolo saga.
