Judgement Saga:
38. Your Past Never Dies
The birds cheeped, their singing echoing over the dawning rural area of vast green lands surrounded by forests and farmer lands.
Down the country road, far away from small town and closest to the autumn forest was a small white, red brick roofed cottage with a flowery garden with a black cat sleeping on the stone wall, his ears perked when the white gate opened from the town's Mailman walking up the path to the house and smiled at the owner who turned to lock his door.
From the distance edging from the forest atop, the ginger haired man in the tweed jacket and red bowtie stalked. He smiled, watching the man from the house, who wore brown boots, red socks tucked his green trousers, a black-long sleeved shirt with the Oatly Forest Park-Ranger logo on the back below his orange triangular scarf. The man turned; his shoulder length straightened black hair blew in the air as he conversed with the mailman before taking his mail.
"Lapis Termina." Jero Ribbon uttered, his ginger quiff blew with the wind across the rustling trees behind him with falling orange leafs landing by his black shoes. "Android Seventeen... From the records he has a wife, two kids a boy and a girl. I'm sure we can make an agreement based on that alone."
"Hm," Jero pondered, he saw Seventeen turn and peered at him, almost as if he heard him. The two locked eyes for a moment before Jero stepped back behind the darkness of the forest out of sight.
A few hours later...
Seventeen walked across the pathway of fallen leafs on his patrol through the forest with his hands tucked into his pockets, thinking.
'Who was that man watching him this morning?' He had been pondering on it all day, each time he came up with the same conclusion... The man looked just like Jero Ribbon – Leader and Founder of the Red Ribbon Revolution. He had definitely heard of them. They had been all over the news, capturing the Impulse's because they were different and people feared them. But it wasn't just that though, Seventeen knew something else, something more was going on. He had received letters, calls to his house a few times these past few weeks trying to trick him into visiting their quarters.
Not this time. He wouldn't let something like that happen again. Not like back then when Dr. Gero tricked him and his twin sister... The two studied Robotics at South City University, where they heard that the once great and admired Dr. Gero was searching for two Interns to work with him for a sandwich year. Even though everyone auditioned, he and his sister got it and went to his lab where...he woke up strapped to that table –
Seventeen gasped, his fingers twitched and he struggled to breathe in his panic attack. He squeezed his eyes shut and focused calming himself straddling away from that horrid day –
"Why, good sir." A voice slivered in Seventeen's ears, he'd heard it before and knew instantly who it was, followed by a hand on Seventeen's shoulder. "Are you alright?"
Seventeen jumped back and twisted around and set sight on Jero Ribbon. The same ginger man with the quiff, tweed jacket bowtie and black trousers with polished shoes. On close examination Seventeen could see two white R's on either side of the bowtie.
"What do you want?" Seventeen glared, with his ghostly blue eyes.
Jero stood expressionlessly, before he smiled raising his eyebrows. "I thought you'd never ask. You see I need your help."
"Help with what?" Seventeen asked sternly, he had no patience for this man.
"Oh nothing really, just I was interested in studying the aspects of your power core – you see it's one of a kind."
"How do you know I'm an Android?"
"You are Lapis Termina, Android Seventeen, aren't you?" Jero said and smiled at Seventeen's shocked expression. He stepped forwards. "The day you were taken, you and your sister Lazuli – Android Eighteen, had your lives stolen by the great Dr. Gero. What was it, your false tragic fate at the hands of a party at your friends, teens drunks in happiness and drove themselves off Culver Down's cliff into the cold sea below? Who would question that, eh?"
Seventeen breathed through his teeth, those headlines yet again rung through his mind again, just like they did after the Cell Games all those years ago. Jero knew everything: the past he thought he had put behind him was suddenly creeping back to plague him once more.
"With your silence I offer you a proposition to ponder on," Jero stared into Seventeen's eyes, and moved his hands as he spoke. "Now if you've read my letters, which I know you have, you'll probably know what I'm about to ask..."
"No." Seventeen answered immediately. "I refuse to have anything to do with anything Red Ribbon related ever again. I don't care what you want with me because I don't need you." He pointed up at himself. "This is who I am and you can't have me. Got it?"
Jero looked at him, his face slowly went dark and he stood like that for a long moment. "Seventeen, in failing to comply you will make me rather upset. And believe me; you wouldn't want that, would you?"
"Oh really?" Seventeen smirked, crossing his arms. "I wouldn't want to make you 'upset', huh? And what will you do if I don't tag along with you? Fight me? No, now that would be stupid 'cause you must realise how strong I am compared to a little insignificant human like yourself, right? So go on, how exactly are you going to persuade me into coming with you?"
Jero glared at him. And then he smiled with a quiet laugh. The sudden change unsettled Seventeen, but he didn't allow it to show and held his bravado.
"Mind if I ask you ask question?" Jero said, inclining his head. "Do you love your family?" He chuckled as his words shot through Seventeen. "Now would it persuade you knowing that we could take them away, if you do not comply with my wishes?"
Seventeen frowned, his face becoming furious. "Leave," He shouted, his calmness and patience gone. "Leave this place now!"
"Seventeen, please be reasonable," Jero Ribbon stepped forwards. "I don't know what you're thinking, but I can assure you it couldn't be further from the truth. You see we need you -"
"I said leave!" Seventeen shouted, his brows lowered harshly, "Leave now, or I will kill you. Got it?"
Jero glared. "Now, how rude. If there's one thing I do not appreciate, it is having my words cut off by another. Now -"
"Fuck off!" Seventeen bounced forwards, fist cocked back and his right hook connected –
His eyes widened. Jero held his leather gloved hand out and Seventeen's fist didn't connect with the palm but instead an invisible wall?! Seventeen pulled back his fist, but Jero caught his wrist and wrenched it around, grabbing the other wrist and held the struggling Seventeen.
"Don't try to fight." Jero demanded.
But Seventeen didn't listen and thrashed around, trying to break out from Jero's grip before a flash of azure light illuminated from Jero's hands, catching Seventeen's attention before the electricity surged into him forcing him to scream. He cried out, the pain was unbearable attacking his nervous system and cybernetics, a pain like nothing he'd ever experienced in his life. The electricity bounced from all over his body, sparking against Jero's force field, attacking everywhere, every part of within his body, and all Seventeen could do was twist and writhe and scream in mercy –
At the point he generally thought he was going to die it stopped and he fell face first in the dirt. His body twitching, unable to move –
"Now," Jero announced, standing above him. "I hope you'll be more eager to listen to me now. I'd like that. I want you to become a part of the Red Ribbon Revolution, Seventeen. As I'm sure you're well aware we as a race becoming even more evolved than ever, than we ever predicted even, reaching into the stars guided in the hands of outsiders, this...Planet Alliance Organisation." Jero puffed, letting his words settle before he lowered his brows. "As I hope you should recall the Tuffle Invasion; where humanity fell at the hands of Prince Baby. We were helpless, but not anymore. I and the RRR are going to change that."
"And why do you need me?" Seventeen struggled.
Jero Ribbon chuckled. "All will be revealed in due time. However!" Jero spun on his heel, pulling out a piece of a pen and paper which he wrote on. "Because I really want you think this through and join the Red Ribbon Revolution on your free will as I'm not one into having the belief of forcing people into my frame of mind..." He smiled, and propped the paper into Seventeen's twitching hand. "You have five days to decide, chap. I do hope you call." He stood up and was about to walk when he turned around in a surprise thought.
"Oh and I don't want you leaving this village within the elected time slot. I wouldn't want you alerting Eighteen, whom may alert the others. The time for me to meet them, isn't of now... Too-da-loo,"
Jero walked past Seventeen's body with his hands behind his back and up the stone stairway.
Seventeen stressed, his hair was a mess and he had waited for the whole five days to elapse before making his decision. He glanced at the picture of him and his family, him and his sister before he looked back at the number on his phone before clicking the call button.
This was it.
...Brr-Brr... Brr-Brr... Brr...Brr...
"So I see you've made your decision, though it has been cut rather short," Jero said. "Tell me, what have you chosen to do?"
"Yes." Seventeen closed his eyes and fought for the next words to follow. "I've...decided to join the Red Ribbon Revolution."
There was a long deafening silence on the other end of the call.
"Perfect. I'll arrange for your transport now, I do look forwards to your initiation process. Thank you and good day for now, Seventeen."
The call ended. Seventeen bowed his head and looked down at his desk with his watering ghostly blue eyes. It was hard to say how he felt. It was a sense of misery, but at the same time pride for protecting his family and his sister from them. It was the promise he had made to himself ever since that horrid day where the twins thought they were going to Gero as just his Interns when it all went downhill.
He would always protect them and would never break the promise he made. He swore it.
Hey everyone, thanks for reading the first chapter of the Judgement Saga of DBG! I hope you enjoyed this little prologue. Now I wasn't sure about this one but the more I think about the pieces of this saga the more I believe it'll work. I hope I'm right, haha!
Update wise, a chapter will be released fortnightly.
Now onto the Q&A:
Q: Jero Ribbon, he's, *sigh* he's the reincarnated Doctor Gero, isn't he? At least King Furry retains his authority. Then again, he saw King Piccolo and probably saw him get killed by Goku. From what I've seen, he seems to be a fair ruler.
A: I can see where you're coming from name wise but you're not quite there I'm afraid. I believe he was a fair ruler and if I remember in the Anime at least he vaguely recognised Goku amongst the Z-Fighters, and I think he would of have known for sure if it wasn't for him being in his Super Saiyan state.
Q: I like Roshi here, I hate it when he's shown as little more than a skirt chaser, he shows his hidden depths, he is old and immortal, well, killable, but can't die of old age, he must know a lot of tricks. That, and if he tries to grope Marron, both 18 and Krillin are going to kill him. I hope Marron can control her powers thanks to the old man.
A: Haha probably yeah! I like it when he's shown as the wise man to, he's been shown throughout the show to have quite the pool of knowledge.
Q: So was a nice change of pace, and a nice way to set up the second saga. Jero Ribbon, hm... I want to say a reincarnation but I feel it'll be something more than that and we do I feel they're catching the Impluse's for something more and why does he want the Z-Fighters so madly?
A: All in good time. All in good time.
Q: Anyways, can't wait for this and I can't wait to see the development on Marron either. And I actually like that Future Pan concept! Sounds good, would have been a fun one to read.
A: Haha, I'm glad to hear that someone like that Future Pan idea, the more I think on it the more I wish I went through with it!
Right, other than that, it leaves me to say thank you for reading and I'll see you in the next one.