Chapter 07 – Bido and the Demise of Hera
It was still just them she could sense. This was bad. This was very bad. This was so bad, Chiri didn't think the situation could get any worse. Was this the kind of fighter the tournament organisers had intended for them to fight? It was incredibly lucky that Chiri and the others had progressed to this round otherwise the regular human contestants would have been slaughtered! Then again there was no guarantee that she wouldn't be either, not if the horrifying icy shard in her spine had anything to say about it. The fighter before her – clearly an alien – was indifferent to her fear. He seemed to be getting a kick from it.
A flash of his golden boot came across her vision before said boot struck the stunned child in the jaw. Chiri was ripped from the ground and sent hurtling across the sand dunes, breaking clean through several of them before coming to a crumpled halt on the burning sand. Only coming to terms with the world no longer spinning, she felt something slam straight onto her skull, earning a reflexive holler of pain as once again the hot surface of the sand engulfed her, once more she found herself being torn through the razor-sharp ground unable to tell which way was up. Her body stung, her mind was a mess and her temper was about to hijack her. Another burst of hot air filled and burned her lungs, a crack of her ribs threw her head-first to the ground, striking rock as she rebounded and collapsed into a heap.
Her mind a jumble of emotions, Chiri forced herself to get up again, flinching as the sharp pain in her side told her to be more careful with it. Against its warning, she stood as tall as she could, eyes finding the enemy. That's what he was now, not an opponent but an enemy. A malicious person who gave her every indication that he had no qualms causing her more pain. And she was a child. He reminded her of Cell.
"Kinda resilient for a little 'un," The tall, teal-skinned male once again folded his arms, grinning confidently at the tiny child. "Didn't think little Earthlings were meant to be this tough. Those bigger 'uns weren't so sturdy."
Chiri blinked stupidly and droned out, "Bigger ones?" She hadn't sensed any deaths as of recent, none at all today. Then again this place seemed to be blocking her ability to sense clearly. A thought had crossed her mind but it seemed too awful to acknowledge. "… You don't mean…"
"Surprised? Don't be," The man responded with a chuckle. "That little thought you've got in your head. The one where you think I killed the weakling who was supposed to be here? Yeah, that happened. They're all dead. The Boss figured you'd be here and if not, this would be a great way to flush you out of hiding. Looks like you guys are terrible at hiding."
Chiri's body began to shake. Not only was she disturbed that he'd guessed her thoughts but he'd also happily admitted to killing innocent people. Whoever was meant to have fought her clearly was no longer here, had been the unfortunate victim of this man. The others had been killed too. This man here was not alone. How many others were there? Were Gohan, Tenshinhan and Krillin all finding themselves in the same predicament as she was? They'd all be busy fighting their own battles, so no one would be able to help her if she needed it. That didn't sit well with her. Neither did the thought that this man had willingly killed someone far weaker than them. That was the lowest of the low as far as Chiri was concerned and it left a bitter taste in her mouth.
He was coming straight for her. This time she saw him. She dodged as one thick leg passed her by; not quick enough to evade his waiting palm which clasped fingers around her face and dragged her through the air. Unable to see but adamant that she wasn't going to be pushed around so easily, Chiri gathered energy in the palm of her hand. It was enough to gauge his attention; the unmistakable searing feel of energy against her skin burned far hotter than the air around her. The ki attack was dead in her face – on her face - and it stung worse than anything she'd felt in a long time as the attack erupted, throwing her several feet into the air and crumpling to the sand once more. Blood poured down her face from the superficial cuts to her forehead – she hoped they were superficial anyway. Glancing forward, he was in her face once more, grabbing her by the scruff of her shirt and holding her high above the ground at an arm's length.
"Very resilient, but not resilient enough to withstand a pitiful amount of energy," The man jeered, admiring the damage he'd caused.
This wasn't going anywhere. Chiri grimaced as a trickle of blood slid through the gap between her eyelids, stinging her eye in the process. Several spots on her ached, her ribs felt as if she'd been hit by a tonne of concrete and she was adamant that her mother would be distraught if she turned up home looking like this. She had to do something drastic.
The look on the mystery man's face fell from a confident smile to one of wonder. Chiri had hollered out, gathering up her energy and forcing her body to undergo drastic changes. The wind picked up, chucking up a thick cloud of sand, grains tossed violently against the wind, stinging against her captor's skin. A couple of specks flicked into his eyes, forcing him to blink them free. When his vision returned, the child in his grasp was glowing a brilliant white, a fiery look in her dark eyes that was hard to ignore. It brought the smile back to his face, forced a chuckle to erupt from his throat. Perhaps there was more to her than he'd initially thought: the resilience had substance to it.
Chiri's fist slapped hard against the arm holding her in place, pushing it from her too easily and freeing her from his hold. The same arm swung back and launched itself clean into his cheek. Chiri unleashed a barrage of attacks, limbs flailing against her foe, each striking him in the face or torso, each hit direct and on target. Yet she could see each hit, though powerful, was having a minimal effect on him. He wasn't blocking them because he couldn't; he wasn't dodging them because he was incapable of keeping up. He was allowing himself to be hit. The smile had not faded, not even with the slaps to his face or the kicks to where Chiri assumed his pressure points should be. Thick skin and clearly a depth of power he hadn't displayed yet.
A long arm lashed out; Chiri dodged by the skin of her teeth. Another arm clipped her in the side of her head knocking her to the side and to the sand. Chiri crashed on her side, dodged as a heavy boot struck where she'd been moments ago. She dodged, evaded and ran as the fighter playfully attacked. Chiri didn't know what was worse; being forced to run rather than attack, or know that he wasn't taking this fight seriously. She'd gathered as much strength as she could and still it wasn't enough. Dodging another punch, she was finally pinned down hard against the sand with his heavy foot, back pressed painfully into the ground, squashing her stomach and making her ribs cry out louder. Chiri groaned through gritted teeth, spitting out the sand she'd been unfortunate enough to eat, feeling the flecks of it burning her skin. The heat hadn't made things any better, if anything it felt as if it were dampening her strength and reflexes. Her muscles ached enough without the injuries she was supporting. Her forehead stung more in the heat, the sand in her shoes irritated her and the foot on her back forced her down further against the sand. This was bad. She didn't have the energy to move herself from under his weight. She didn't have the motivation to fight against the hotness of her surroundings. She felt as if she were sitting in a painfully hot bath, uncomfortable and wanting to get out but too drained to muster it. This wouldn't do.
"Looks like you're about done, little 'un," The man mused, extending one arm straight for her and aiming his palm, fingers spread. A blue light began to emit from his palm as he gathered up his energy. "I'll try and leave something of you for them to find."
"I'm… I'm not done…" Chiri hissed through her teeth, turning her head against her better judgement. "I'm not done yet!"
"Yes you are," He responded, malicious grin spreading on his dark face as the shadows crossed it, the light of the ki gathering glowing brighter.
The area erupted in a blinding flash of light, a deafening roar of mistaken thunder clapped across the atmosphere and several tonnes of sand were obliterated, chucked to the hurricane-force winds and sent far and wide. The ground trembled under the explosion, shuddering until it slowly calmed, sand and debris falling back upon it like rain. The dense mist of the dust cloud that'd been chucked high into the atmosphere carried on the dying winds, passing across the land marking out the terrific eruption that'd just taken place, no longer marking its origins. High above the freshly-made crater, the tall teal-skinned man hovered, admiring his work. However, something else had brought the smile to his face.
A few feet below and several metres away, the young child he'd just tried to murder hovered. She was in one piece. She'd survived the shock of the attack, had dodged with a hairs width of space to spare. And, speaking of hair, hers had changed. The white glow that'd surrounded her body just a minute ago was now replaced by a golden aura. Her hair had drastically changed from the jet black mop to a punkish blonde, floating mostly around her head as opposed to flat and oppressed by gravity, as if somehow it'd grown strength of its own. He had no idea what she'd just done but it was intriguing… and if he could detect her power accurately, had just boosted her capabilities and strength.
"I told you I wasn't done," Chiri growled, momentarily lost behind the wall of dust before the cloud drifted onwards.
The man snorted at this remark, brushing his goatee with one gloved hand. "What has Lord Bojack stumbled upon? These Earthlings are really peculiar…" He'd never heard of an Earthling being able to transform like this, even if in reality he and his comrades knew very little about the Earthlings. Their quick sweep of the planet had shown them that unlike those who'd unintentionally freed them from their prison, the vast majority, almost the entirety of the Earthling population, were as weak as ants. It was just this tiny group of freaks that'd gathered upon this planet that seemed to possess anything worth noting… It reminded him a little of them. Freakishly strong, leagues above the other members of their people. The Planet Hera had been brought to near extinction because of them; they'd killed their own people, destroyed the population and brought it down to a handful. In a way it surprised and disgusted him that the freaks of this planet had not shown their superiority and done the same thing.
The little one before him would be the least experienced amongst them all, so it wouldn't take much to kill her off. Unfortunately, his boss had other plans. Bujin, Gokua and Zangya would likely have an interesting time fighting the unfortunate souls that'd managed to stumble upon their midst. Bido himself was now intrigued by his victim's sudden change. Perhaps this battle wouldn't be as simple as he'd thought but that wasn't to say it wouldn't be a walk in the park for him.
The little one roared as she conquered up more of her energy, the aura around her growing larger, the wind sweeping away from her and buffering against him. In a flash she'd charged, much faster than before. Bido was ready for her. His large hand caught her tiny arm as she threw an elbow for his jaw; his knee blocked her own from hitting him in the chest; his other hand parried off the ki attack she fired from close range. His grasp, however, was not what it had been on her. Chiri's small form was also difficult to hit with her increase in speed; one of his thick fists was evaded as she spun around him, striking him in the back of the head with a well-aimed kick. Bido turned and lashed out his hand, missing her as she backflipped over him, firing off several ki blasts at point blank, quickly engulfing him in a thick cloud of smoke and subjecting him to an onslaught of stings. Each blast pushed her slowly away from him, increasing the distance between them. When she figured she was far enough away, Chiri cupped her hands to her side and charged up the blue orb. "Kamehamehaa!"
The skies lit up with the brilliant light of the Kamehameha as it collided with its target, the resounding roar of the explosion echoing over the desert sands.
Fists clashed together as the two launched into a rapid dance of attacks mid-air, Chiri's limbs unable to reach as far and do less damage but Bido's limbs too slow and beefed up to hit her as often as he'd have liked. The ki barrage and Kamehameha had gathered up a blotch of bruising across his shoulder blades but it hadn't slowed him down any. This had sent alarm bells ringing in Chiri's head; the rush of transforming was starting to wear off and the relentless heat was still dragging on her. It wasn't long until one of his attacks finally hit its mark, forcing Chiri to soar several feet to the right. In that instant Bido had appeared in her path, both fists slamming her down towards the sand. Chiri opened one eye, heart kick-started as the ground was suddenly terrifyingly approaching her, raised her hands and fired an attack to slow her approach. Bido was suddenly in between her and the ground, then between her attack and the ground. A counter attack fired from his outstretched palm. Forces tore through her as Chiri bounced back skybound, stomach wanting to hurl its contents out from the sudden change. Floating back to the ground took forever. Her lost thoughts felt as if they went on and on until they were abruptly torn from her mind, replaced by the registration of pain in her back as she collided with something hard. Bido's knee was the something she'd collided with.
Collapsing once again onto the ground felt as if she'd fallen on sandpaper, oddly enough. A cough escaped Chiri's throat, body shaking with adrenaline and discomfort. The rush had definitely gone now, body was starting to return to normal, the slightly older aches making themselves known again, now joined by the newer damage she'd taken. Her mind went back to trying to sense the others, still unable to find them. The heat was still weighing her down, she couldn't keep up her current activity pace in this place.
Something – a fist probably – hit her hard in the head. She couldn't tell if her enemy was squatting beside her or if that was a rock shading her. Whatever it was hit her again, knocking any thought that managed to form clean from her head. She could feel her consciousness slipping and internally groaned, slipping further and further away until the world suddenly shut itself off from her and everything became nothing.
Gohan had problems. He was in the middle of his battle with one of Mr Satan's visitors, only the funny thing was he was sure this alien had not been invited. Not only was he not much of a talker, he held powers unlike anything Gohan'd seen before. Several times his environment had changed, going from bizarre, creepy child's playroom to a dark, dim cave, then to the dilapidated, deserted city he now fought in. His opponent was especially gifted in making materials and objects float and move to his command, throwing whatever he could at Gohan. So far so good, Gohan had managed to dodge any major damage; he could handle this level of battle. What worried him was that the others would likely be facing a similar reception wherever they were. He couldn't sense anything beyond the world they seemed to be in, couldn't even sense the friends he knew he'd left at the tournament. Something had blocked out outside energy and he wasn't sure how it'd been done.
He had to act and had been doing so for quite a while. Escaping back to the Budokai wouldn't help as he'd only drag his pursuing foe back to the spectators. For all he knew, this guy was just as stuck here as he was. He didn't quite believe that thought but it kept on popping up.
Now resting behind a large concrete wall, listening out for any signs of his opponent approaching or attacking, Gohan took in a deep breath. Piccolo would have been a great help right now. Even if he wasn't as adept in the use of psychic abilities as his opponent was, Gohan knew that Piccolo had knowledge and was often the voice of logic and explanation. He could pull things from where they lay, could create things from nothing, he'd even been known to use psychic abilities during Gohan's youth (apparently he'd levitated his unconscious body clean from Bulma's hands when he'd taken him in for training.) Having him here to explain to Gohan how he suddenly couldn't sense anyone else would have been useful about now.
Something high-pitched was coming towards him. Gohan glanced around the wall, then back up and ahead of him, clocking the large pane of glass hurtling towards him. Leaping up, he easily dodged the projectile as it shattered into thousands of pieces, glass fragments sparkling momentarily as they fell and flew like diamond snowflakes. His trajectory had been predicted as a broken, dilapidated bus hurtled to him from behind. Gohan turned and reared up his energy, suddenly shimmering with bright light and deflecting the hurtling vehicle back.
His body seized up. What was going on? He couldn't move. Why couldn't he move? Gohan struggled and glanced down; his body was littered with tight purple lines acting like ropes, binding him in place. His limbs were too tightly pressed up against him to effectively free himself and each time he moved, his energy seemed to sap from him into the bonds. Psychic ability, it had to be. If he couldn't move or summon his energy then what else was he meant to do?
Something dark hurtled towards him. Gohan took in a deep breath and braced himself. The object was inches from him.
Gone.
Confused, Gohan opened his eyes. The shadow blocking the distant sun was still over him but it no longer belonged to the object that'd been thrown towards him.
