Chapter 9: Lapis's Crew
Author's Note: Happy 2021 people. This chapter switches from different character's point of view.
Lazuli woke up with a gasp, her body trembling slightly by what she had just witnessed. Never had she had anything so vivid and real before, it was as if the dream was actually a memory and not some imagined scenario.
In her dream, she was apparently looking through the viewpoint of a small child who she assumed was a boy by how he sounded. The kid looked like he was playing hide and seek with another boy in a strange landscape that the blonde scientist wasn't familiar with. The sky was dark pink instead of the blue on Earth for one, and the buildings populating the scene were of strange shapes unlike any architectural style she knew of.
The boy Lazuli's character was playing with had a very long hair, one that shouldn't be possible with a child of his age. His spikey and almost hedgehog-like hair extended all the way down to his hips and would frequently touch the ground whenever he bent crouched down. This young boy was also apparently slightly taller than his playmate as whenever the two were talking, Lazuli's point of view would tilt up slightly.
There were also one or two occasions where her character ran by a river and Lazuli almost gasped at the reflection staring back at her. Although the reflection wasn't very clear, the child looked oddly familiar to a small version of Goku completed with the same black spikey-hair and tail. The only difference between this kid and the alien warrior friend of hers was the small boy had a much gentler expression and was genuinely happy while the present day Goku always had a serious look on him
The next scenery the blonde woman could recall was her character sitting by a table devouring strange looking food. Aside from the taller kid she had already seem earlier were two adults whom she assumed to be the two boys' parents. The father figure closely resembled the Goku she knew with the same spikey-hair and almost identical serious looking face. The only part different about him was the cross-shaped scar on his left cheeks. The mother figure, on the other hand, had a much gentler expression on her face and wasn't eating much compared to the three male eaters. She would try to make small talks to her spouse and the two kids but didn't get much attention from them as they were too busy eating to be bothered.
The last scenery Lazuli could remember was the same mother trying to reach for her children who appeared to be taken away by several figures while the father was trying to hold her back. The woman had tears streaming down her face and was begging so profusely that even the blonde woman watching this strange drama unfolding was moved by her. In fact, when Lazuli had woken up, she could feel what felt like trials of tears on her face.
"Now isn't that a weird dream? I wonder if this has anything to do with Goku?" thought Lazuli with a yawn as she sat up on the bed.
Looking around her surroundings, the woman found out that the sun was just beginning to rise up from the horizon as rays of sunlight penetrated the curtained window barely illuminating her surroundings. Carefully, she made her way across the room towards the light switch and upon flipping the switch, discovered a hastily written note on the wall.
"The police chief just called an emergency meeting, gotta go sis. Also my two friends will be dropping by this morning so watch out for a blonde and a bald guy. P.S. Ask them 'what's for breakfast' and they should respond with 'Gero's ass'. Oh, don't do anything stupid with Goku or he'll PAY!" Lazuli read aloud with a scoff, "What are you? My legal guardian?" she commented, displeased at how protective her younger brother was if protective was even the right word to describe Lapis.
Turning around to check on her friends, the blonde soon found Sixteen and Goku still asleep in their bed and decided not to wake them just yet. Instead, she made her way to the bathroom to get a quick shower before heading for the kitchen, her mind set on cooking something for all three of them.
Goku was in a deep sleep when out of nowhere, a delicious smell invaded his nostrils and his stomach began to growl. The Saiyan tried falling back to sleep but his stomach was craving food so bad no amount of lying still on the bed could take him back to dreamland. Begrudgingly, the alien warrior opened his eyes and sat up on the bed and was greeted by Lazuli and No.16 who were both seated by the dining table with numerous plates of food in front of them.
"Good morning Goku, I trust you had a good night's sleep?" asked the beautiful blonde friend of his, her icy blue eyes seemingly beaming at him as if trying to invite him over to the table with her look alone. The always silent Sixteen also gave him a smile, his hand pointing at the empty seat beside him.
No longer drowsy thanks to the allure of food and the fact his companions were waiting for him, Goku quickly made his way to the table. Soon he was devouring plate after plate of food and his tummy went from deflated to stretching his pants to its limits in no time.
While the Saiyan warrior was busy eating, he could've sworn Lazuli was paying way more attention to him than she used to, her beautiful eyes constantly studying him as he shoved food into his insatiable mouth. It wasn't that Goku didn't like his female friend looking at him, on the contrary, he found the blonde showing him that much interest to be...well...attractive? Or at least that's the word he thought best described his emotion, which wasn't unlike what he had felt last night when the two stared into each other, but even him, the socially awkward Saiyan knew it when someone was looking a bit too frequently.
"Lazuli...are you alright?" asked Goku using the most frequently heard phrase these past few days, hoping he had asked the right question. His friend seemed to be caught off guard by his question and hurriedly took her glance away from him, a light blush could be seem on her cheeks which the Saiyan thought was kinda cute.
"Yes Goku...I'm alright," said Lazuli looking like she was trying to think of something to say, "it's...it's just that the way you eat your food reminds me of someone from my dream."
Goku looked at his friend with quizzed look on his face wondering what she meant by someone from her dream. Apparently Sixteen didn't get what she meant too as he putted down his spoon and turned to look at her puzzled. The awkward silence only made the blonde blush harder and the Saiyan couldn't help but to think of how good the red cheeks looked when paired with her blue eyes.
"Just...just never mind what I said okay?" suddenly screamed Lazuli making the two gentlemen jump a bit before all resumed eating once more.
It was close to nine when the ringing of the doorbell alerted the three of their visitor.
Not taking any chances, since the trio had been through enough surprise visits from the Red Ribbon Army goons, Sixteen grabbed a loaded shotgun he had taken from Lapis's prized gun collection and Goku took up a fighting stance while Lazuli held a revolver behind her back as she approached the front door. Peering through the peephole, the young woman could make out a woman with long curly blonde hair with flowy ribbons tied on it and a tall bald man with red bandana tied across his forehead behind her.
"What's for breakfast?" asked Lazuli thinking back to the message her brother left on the wall.
"Gero's ASS!" came a booming voice of someone used to be in charge, shocking the usually quiet scientist but also gave her a sense of relief.
"Gero's ass? But we already ate breakfast?" asked Goku wondering if he had heard anything wrong causing his companions to giggle humorously.
"No Goku, we aren't really going to have Gero's ass for breakfast, it was just Lapis's crude way of making sure we didn't invited the wrong people." Explained Lazuli pocketing her revolver while Sixteen also lowered his shotgun.
Soon the two figures waiting outside came in with deliberate and confident strides, giving the occupants a clear view of who Lapis's friends were. Immediately, Goku and No.16 could tell the two were veterans of many fights judging from their body posture and the strong presence about them. The curly-haired blonde was wearing a black tank top and camouflage pants completed with military boots, giving her the appearance of a commando. Her partner looked just as impressive with a white tank top, green pants, and a red belt tied around his waist, making him look like a martial artist. In fact, their combined presence was so strong Lazuli had to take a step back away from the two.
Finally, after moments of awkward staring contest, the curly blonde decided to break the ice and smiled. "You must be the famous Lazuli! It's a pleasure to finally meet you." Said the female commando extending her hand towards the scientist, her voice deep and full of energy.
Lazuli extended her hand and the two blonde women shook hands. Despite of already surviving numerous encounters against the Red Ribbon Army, it was painfully apparent the soldier woman's hand was much stronger as she gave Lazuli's hand a firm squeeze. She could also feel the countess calluses on the curly blonde's hand and it sent shivers down the Lazuli's body as she became aware the difference in battle experience between the two.
"The pleasure is mine...Miss...?" asked the scientist mustering up her courage.
"Launch, just call me Launch sister," said the much more muscular woman giving Lazuli a wink before turning her head towards her partner, "and this here is my trustful boyfriend Tien. He's an accomplished martial artist and former world champion."
The tall man behind Launch known as Tien stepped inside and gave the trio a small bow to which they nodded their heads back at him, not sure how to respond to the martial artist's greeting.
"So, these are the three famous guerrilla fighters who had managed to give the Red Ribbon Army some major headache heh?" asked Launch once the door was closed, "I must admit, I was expecting a trio of monsters, not you three!" finished her sentence candidly without holding back, drawing her blank stares from Lazuli, Goku, and Sixteen. Her companion coughed softly behind her as if reminding her mind her manner and Launch gave him a look as if telling him she's got this.
"I mean, don't get me wrong, you two looked very impressive and I could tell have been through a lot," commented the curly-haired blonde looking at Sixteen and Goku sizing them up, "but you my dear Lazuli, is a civilian aren't you?" inquired her making Lazuli blush in embarrassment.
"Lazuli isn't just any civilian though, she was the chief assistant of Dr. Gero and was the one who engineered this whole rebellion." Stated the gentle giant coming to his friend's defense.
"Oh? So you are the strategist of the bunch? Well why don't you say that sooner sister? I like girls with brains!" said Launch following it up with a hearty laugh, her openness immediately defused the tension and she gave Lazuli a firm pat on her back.
"You'll have to excuse my partner Launch, she couldn't help but to be straight forward with everyone she meets." Chimed in Tien giving his girlfriend an faux accusation look.
"Hey, it didn't hurt anyone right Tien?" said Launch jabbing her partner's stomach with her elbow playfully and her boyfriend beamed back at her with a smile.
As the two guests continued their lovers' banter, it was made very apparent to Goku and Lazuli that this couple really loved each other and were completely at ease with one another. The Saiyan warrior couldn't help himself but to steal a glance at the beautiful blonde's direction and was surprised to find she had also glanced at him at the same time.
Startled that the spikey-haired Saiyan had caught her looking at him, Lazuli quickly averted his gaze but the alien warrior kept on staring at her, enjoying the blushes resurfacing her cheeks. "Hopefully one day we'll both be as good for each other as these two." The two thought while looking at Tien and Launch with slight envy in their eyes, both unaware they were thinking of the same thing.
"So, what do you guys say we go over the activities of the Red Ribbon Army? I'm sure we can all benefit by sharing our Intel." Came Launch's confident voice pulling Goku and Lazuli from their thoughts.
Lapis was sitting at the backrow of the police briefing room with his arms and legs crossed, his icy blue eyes glaring daggers at the Red Ribbon Army officers giving him and his colleagues a presentation of the three troublemakers they were after.
"Remember, these three maniacs have already slaughtered countless civilians in their wakes, you as caretakers of the community must do all it takes to bring these killers to justice. Is that understood?" shouted the leader of the bunch who addresses himself as Colonel Silver at the policemen.
"Sir yes sir we got you sir!" the entire briefing room became filled with military style replies as almost everyone stood up from their seats at attention, some of the police even gave the Red Ribbon Army Colonel military salutes, no doubt fearing what the soldiers might do to them if they displayed even a hint of disobedience.
The raven-haired man sighed in disgust as he too got up from his seat, putting in the minimal effort least these scums decide to punish him for acting out. He could see the police chief was also busy ass kissing his esteemed guests, a gesture that seemed to bring a cocky smile to Colonel Silver who kept his blue jacket covered chest high like an rooster demonstrating his power.
"Very good my fellow comrades! I'll be waiting to hear from your report!" said the colonel beginning to make his way out of the room followed by his band of lackeys.
The moment the soldiers left, their police chief took to the podium and shouted, "Well, what are you people waiting for? Quickly get your asses outside and find these three bastards!" and with it, the congregation of law enforcement officers scrambled to find the fugitives the Red Ribbon Army demanded to be caught.
A million thoughts crowded Lapis's mind as he drove his patrol car in circles pretending to be working. Just how much influence does the Red Ribbon Army has and how come none of his connections warned him about the visiting Colonel Silver? Perhaps he should move his sister and her friends somewhere else, like hundreds of miles away from here.
As he kept on driving aimlessly through the neighborhood, a lone figure dressed in trench coat and had a hat on caught his attention. For some reason, no matter how fast he drove or how many corners he turned, the guy was always two blocks behind him.
"So you want to play eh big guy? Well let's play!" muttered Lapis angrily. He took out his mobile phone from his pocket and sent several messages while keeping an eye on his stalker. In less than a minute, the street cop had gotten replies from his contacts, causing a dark grin to appear on his face.
Lapis slowly made his way away from the downtown area and into the impoverished part of town with the buildings getting more rundown as he drove on. To be honest with himself, the raven-haired man didn't want any confrontation with the Red Ribbon Army or their affiliated gangs, but if they wanted to pick a fight in his stomping ground, then he sure as hell wouldn't hold back on them. He had been a street punk running errands for the major gangsters for as long as he could remember and even as a cop he still maintained those connections. Now is as good a time as any to put those connections to good use.
It was late afternoon by the time he parked his car next to a landfill in the outskirts of the city. The place was devoid of life for as far as eye could see, a perfect place to settle some private matters. Getting off his car, Lapis was surprised but also kinda glad his pursuer had followed him to his destination and from the looks of it, he wasn't afraid of getting spotted.
The two men eyed each other from a distance and although Lapis couldn't make out the man's face with the black hat, he could tell his opponent was studying him as well. Putting his hands inside his pocket, the raven-haired man began walking towards his stalker and the said stalker did the same.
"Is there anything I can help you civilian?" asked Lapis stopping in his track once the two got within five feet of each other and his opponent halted as well.
"Yes officer," said the man in a distinct cowboy accent and pulled out a photograph from his coat, "I was wondering if you recognize the woman in this picture."
Lapis immediately recognized the person in the photo, it was his sister Lazuli in a white lab coat, probably taken while she was working at Dr. Gero's lab. Still, the younger brother pretended to study the picture a bit, wondering how long this pursuer can keep the act up.
"Nah, sorry man, don't know her. What's she to you anyways? Your sister?" replied Lapis trying to sound as nonchalant as possible when in reality he was boiling with rage. What the stalker said next would destroy any illusion of civility between the two.
"No Seventeen, but I'm pretty sure this is your sister. Surely you've seen her recently and even gave her a helping hand hadn't you?" stated the guy in trench coat before slowly taking off his hat, revealing a browless man missing half his silver hair.
"So it is you, Thirteen is it? What do you want?" said Lapis drawing his gun on the man. Just last night he had said he wanted to have a go at his sister's pursuer and here he is standing in front of him. Perhaps he can do what he said yesterday and simply put a bullet in between this asshole's eyes he thought.
"Oh nothing much really, me and my Red Ribbon Army colleagues just want to have a word with you that's all. So why don't you come with me and we'll have this all sorted out in no time." Replied No.13 smugly still keeping his hands inside his trench coat looking not concerned at all about the gun pointing at him.
"And if I refuse to comply?" asked the raven-haired man.
"Then I'll beat the living crap out of you until you tell me where your sister is!" was Thirteen's reply.
"Over my dead body!" said Lapis before raising his gun to the air and fired a shot.
As if on cue, the previously lifeless wasteland suddenly burst into life with dozens of men emerging from the surroundings. Soon Thirteen found himself surrounded by close to fifty armed men holding a variety of weapons, some had melee weapons like baseball bats and machetes while others held hunting rifles and crossbows. The silver-haired man didn't seemed to be bothered one bit and kept his cold killer look on him which unsettled Lapis to some degree. "Still acting tough heh? Well we'll see just how tough you are!" he thought.
Suddenly, a loud whistle blew out and the crowd surrounding No.13 parted, giving way for a guy with long and unkempt black-hair to pass through.
"So this is the man who's been tailing you heh Lapis? Well he sure looks tough I'll give him that!" said the man who was obviously the leader of the gang.
"Yeah that's him Yamcha, he's been following me this whole afternoon and also messed up my sister and her friends pretty bad." Said Lapis and the entire gang roared angrily as if trying to drown Thirteen alive with their volume alone.
"Ahh, so he's a woman-beater heh? Well I hate woman-beaters! In the name of all cute girls in the world I shall cut you to ribbons!" yelled Yamcha suddenly drawing a curved knife and charged at Thirteen.
The killer cyborg merely smirked at his attacker and raised his right hand to block the blade. To everyone's surprise, Yamcha's weapon shattered upon hitting Thirteen's arm, the only damage he sustained was a cut on his trench coat. The crowd surrounding No.13 couldn't help but to take a step back seeing this, gasps and mutters of "no way!" and "is that guy even human?" filled the air.
Yamcha quickly discarded his broken knife without second thought and took up fighting stance, his fingers curved, mimicking an animal's claw while his knees bent ready to pounce on his opponent.
"Now you've done it! You shall witness Yamcha the Desert Bandit's legendary wolf fang fist!" someone in the crowd shouted and others followed, cheering on their boss. Lapis was also confident in his friend, for that the wolf fang fist had won Yamcha many fights and it was said he could leave claw marks on even steel itself.
"Owooooooo!" cried the desert bandit like a real wolf as he leapt at the killer cyborg, his hands moving at an inhuman speed targeting Thirteen's vital organs. Instead of hitting his target though, Yamcha found his claws caught by the silver-haired man's hands who then proceeded to break his palms with a brutal squeeze, sounds of broken bones were audible to all present. Another kick to the head sealed the deal as No.13 finished his foe off, sending him flying over the crowd gathered around him into a dumpster.
The gang was still in shock at how short the fight lasted when the half-mechanical monster charged into them, sending broken bodies flying everywhere. The crowd began panicking as some decided to flee for their lives while others began firing their weapons trying to hit Thirteen who was moving so fast he appeared to be a blur in their eyes.
Lapis was frozen in terror at the carnage he was witnessing, his sister's advice on not to take her pursuers lightly came back to his mind but he knew it was too late for regrets. For some unknown reason, the killer cyborg never laid a hand on him despite of him standing right in front of the cyborg. "Are you taunting me you bastard? Are you telling me you could've killed me many times over? Well I'll make you pay for making fun of me!" the younger twin thought.
The raven-haired officer began running back to his patrol car, the sound of people getting slaughtered still ringing behind him. Opening up the trunk, he took out a weird looking gun just in time for the cries to die down. The two men were once again facing each other from a distance, the only thing changed being there were now fifty or so corpses lying around the stalker. Thirteen now sported the look of a deranged serial killer, there were blood all over his trench coat and some even got onto his face.
"Well, you are one tough sonuvabitch I'll give you that, but are you man enough to take this head on?" asked Lapis pointing his gun at the cyborg.
"Bring it kiddo, give me your best shot!" said No.13 licking his lips.
Instead of firing a normal bullet, the thing coming out of Lapis's gun looked more like a grenade of sorts. Just as it was about to make contact against Thirteen's body, the grenade exploded, generating strong currents of electricity that covered the cyborg's body. No.13 began convulsing nonstop, his body trembling violently and soon smokes began pouring out from his body.
"Hahaha! How do you like the taste of an enhanced EMP round you bastard?" asked Lapis enjoying his opponent getting electrocuted. By the time the light work had stopped, his trench coated opponent was lying face down with his body still twitching occasionally.
Standing before his fallen foe, Lapis gave the downed Thirteen a couple of kicks to make sure he was dead for good. "Hmph! Perhaps now Lazuli wouldn't find that Goku so special when I can also bring this monstrosity down." Said the cop aloud with sadness in his voice. The victory had come at too great a cost, he knew most of the gathered gang by name, they were his old pals, his fellow criminal brothers.
"And speaking of friends..." muttered Lapis making his way towards the dumpster where Yamcha had fallen. While he never thought of the desert bandit as a world-class fighter, the black-haired man knew the bandit was still a formidable fighter and still couldn't believe he had gotten taken out so easily.
The policeman didn't get to take more than a few steps before the sound of someone getting back up came from behind him. Not believing what he had just heard, Lapis quickly spun around, only to find a large firm hand clasping around his throat lifting him up.
"Nice try Seventeen, but thankfully the good doctor was smarter than you are and have outfitted me with anti-EMP system. Now why don't you be a good boy and tell me where your sister is?" asked Thirteen applying more pressure to his victim's throat.
"Cur...curse you...I'll never sell out my sister..." muttered the younger trying to kick the killer cyborg.
"Then I shall send you to meet your maker boy!" said Thirteen as his fingers dug deep into Lapis's throat. Just before he could kill the young man though, a voice came through on Thirteen's communication system.
"Thirteen, report Number Thirteen! Did I hear that you have captured Eighteen's brother?" asked Dr. Gero's voice.
"Yes doctor, but why should it matter? I'll kill the boy and capture our targets in no time!" replied Thirteen not happy his fun was being spoiled.
"No! You will not do such a thing! Bring the brat to me and we'll set a trap up for them! I repeat keep the brat alive you hear?" shouted Gero through the communication channel.
"Yes doctor..." said Thirteen dropping the now unconscious Lapis onto the ground.
It was now close to midnight and most of the occupants at Lapis's household were asleep. Lazuli was doing some experiments at the dining room table, trying to create medicine for Goku with limited supplies. The television in the living room was also still on, airing news stories regarding how she and her two "boyfriends" had killed dozens of people and bombed a train full of innocent people. The blonde woman rolled her eyes at the ludicrous stories the reporters wrote, part of her wanted to shut the TV down but for the sake of keeping track of new developments, she had kept it on.
She, Sixteen, and Goku had spent the day chatting with Launch and Tien, exchanging information regarding the Red Ribbon Army. Apparently, Launch used to be in the special forces and now runs a private group investigating on the wrongdoings of the Red Ribbon Army. Her boyfriend, Tien, was a martial artist whom she had encountered during one of her missions. The two had since fallen in love after fighting to a draw against one another and were now living together. Even now as she was creating new chemical formulas for Goku, the two lovers were upstairs in the guest room busy with their own affairs.
"Ohhhh...oh yes Tien, yes that's it Tien! Oh kami you are so good!" came Launch's loud moans from upstairs accompanied by the unmistakable sound of bed creaking. Lazuli had to concentrate her hardest not to spill the chemicals in her hands. Of the two, the female commando was definitely the loud one and the blonde scientist couldn't help but to wonder if she will be as loud as Launch if she and Goku ever get together.
"Very funny Lazuli, shake out of it girl! You have a mission to accomplish!" thought Lazuli as she poured the blue chemical on her left hand into a beaker. It was also thanks to Launch that Lazuli had learned a thing or two about firearms and the scientist couldn't wait to show off her improved marksmanship in front of Goku and Sixteen.
Suddenly, her experiment was halted when the news broadcaster announced that they will be interrupting their program with an emergency announcement. The TV screen then cuts into the face of a man in his thirties sporting brown messy hair and wearing blue jackets. What really caught Lazuli's attention; however, was another man sitting in the back of the room. The man she saw was bruised and bloody but she could've sworn to kami he looked very familiar. But no way, it couldn't be him?
"Hello fellow citizens, my name is Colonel Silver and I'm an officer in the Red Ribbon Army," said the man with an arrogant voice, "today I have the pleasure of bringing you all a great news that will no doubt bring much joy to your boring lives!" said Colonel Silver before stepping sideways and the camera zoomed in on the face of her brother, Lapis.
Tears began streaming down Lazuli's cheeks while her fists shook with rage at what they had done to her brother. In her anger, the only words she caught was that her twin will be publicly executed tomorrow at noon at the public square in front of the police station.
Author's Note: So here's the long awaited chapter 9. It took me much longer to update this time since I had trouble deciding where to take the story after Lazuli met up with her twin brother Lapis. For people who are into Tien x Launch, I won't be including too much of their story here but will include the two from time to time since those two have been one of my favorite official couples.
Also thanks everyone for the continued support, couldn't get this far without your encouragements. As always let me know where you want me to take this story, I always enjoyed reading your inputs. Currently I'm planning on diving deeper into Goku's backstory once I'm done with Android 13 arc.