An Unburdened Fury
Chapter 59: Cauterize
Gohan grinned as he put down the latest Dragonball. They were already nearly halfway with three; they'd be done in no time! But, oddly enough, no one seemed to be happy about it. The Namekians they've met seemed to notice it too but no one was explaining anything.
And they all left Cooler alone which was weird because he was so friendly. Even Cooler's friends were staying away. That wasn't fair to him. Bulma said he was bad and to stay away but he hadn't seen anything. The boy resolved himself to try and be friends with the alien. That couldn't be just why his friends were staying away right?
As everyone was getting ready to move on, he approached Cooler.
"Hello there, Mr. Cooler!"
Hatred. For a moment, it was all he could see in the alien's face. Nerves froze the boy in his step. He blinked and Cooler was smiling at him. Did that really happen? He looked so nice now; was that all in his head? The wariness of all the adults must be rubbing off.
"Hello there, Gohan, was it?" Cooler's tone was as equally pleasant as his smile and the half Saiyan was put at ease.
It must've been a trick of the light or something.
"That's me!" The boy grinned in return. "Sorry to bother you but I was wondering why you're here alone?"
Cooler waved him off. "A child's curiosity is not something to apologize for." He looked over Gohan's head and his smile shifted into more of a smirk. Gohan was about to turn and look but Cooler crouched in front of him. "To answer your question, I like my solitude. It gives me some time to really self-reflect and think things over."
"Oh, that's neat. Kinda like meditating?"
A chuckle. "Of a sorts, I suppose. I keep my eyes open for it."
"I was wondering something, Mr. Cooler-."
"Please just call me Cooler." His easy going smirk shook a little. "Ah, pardon my interruption, you were saying?"
Gohan scratched at the back of his head, a habit he picked up from his dad. Cooler was pretty-er... cool so far. "Oh, sorry! So you're different from everyone around here." We're earthlings then there's the Namekians and Bujin told me they were Herans. What are you?"
"I'm known as an Arcosian." He looked up in the distance once more and his smile grew just a bit as he wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulders/ "Better known throughout the galaxy as a Frost Demon."
That was a weird name. It made them seem evil. "Frost Demon? Why?"
"Our planet is one of extreme cold. A drop of water spilled from your cup would freeze solid before it hit the ground on even our warmest days. The moniker was originally one of derision by the greater galactic community but we made it ours in time." The Arcosian had an almost wistful look to him, as if remembering fond memories, before he returned his attention to Gohan. "Now I've told you mine, what are you?"
"An Earthling?" The boy answered with some reluctance. He thought Cooler had already known.
He shook his head. "I understand that," He ducked his head low and his voice lowered to a whisper. "But, forgive me if I'm presumptuous, some of your features are reminiscent of another group that I'm familiar with. You wouldn't happen to be Saiyan?"
"Oh! I'm half Saiyan! My dad is a Saiyan who landed on Earth."
A scowl flashed on his face before it was quickly replaced with pleasant surprise. "A Saiyan? They yet live?"
The boy eagerly nodded his head. "Yep! There's my dad, my uncle Raditz, and our friend Nappa!"
Cooler squeezed at his shoulder; it didn't hurt but it was close to it. "Fascinating, they survived their planet's cataclysm."
"Gohan, what are you doing over here?" Present Bulma half-ran over to the two followed closely by the Earthlings and Herans. She nearly froze seeing how close Cooler was. "You know you're supposed to stick with us. Kami knows what your mom'll do to us if she knew we left you unsupervised."
"Ah, no worries, Bulma." He nudged Gohan to move back with his friends. "The boy and I were having a pleasant chat. No need to worry at all."
Bulma grabbed at the half-Saiyan and seemingly pushed him into the group as the Herans moved past him. The earthlings hurried off in pursuit of the fourth Dragon Ball.
Cooler let out a long breath through his nostrils as they turned and finally stopped looking at him. How he so wanted to just snap the little runt's neck.
It seems that Frieza lost his touch at genocide if so many Saiyans survived his purge. No matter, it gave him something to look forward to later. Once he was done with this ball of mud, he'd hop on over to Earth and make sure they're really extinct this time. One Broly was threatening enough; any potential more of him needed to be prevented.
"What were you doing with the kid, Cooler?" Zangya half-whisper as the Herans fell into step alongside him. "I thought we were trying to keep a low profile here."
"I was. Nothing untoward happen." He replied while pretending to inspect his nails. "Gohan and I merely had a talk. I think I made a friend." The pleasant facade dropped as his piercing gaze focused squarely on her a moment later. "It's what you three have been doing after all."
Kogu shrugged at the implied accusation. "We're thieves. It's pretty common for us to blend in with people to get their trust. Helps you rob them blind later."
A good explanation. One he wouldn't question normally.
"Hmph, don't get too close to them then." The Earthlings flew up into the sky and he flew after them. It was a casual pace for everyone involved so the Herans caught up moments later. "Those wishes will be ours; I'd hate to see a conflict of interest."
Bujin sped up until he was right next to the Arcosian. "But there's enough for both groups. You'd be inviting unnecessary conflict; aren't we trying to avoid that?"
"You'd be correct but these are wishes after all. The greatest treasure in the galaxy. Genome may be fast but he's not capable of instant teleportation. He would have used it to catch us much sooner rather than find us on some backwater like he did."
"So what," Zangya gestured at the other group. "We just kill them all at the next Dragon Ball or something?"
She would like to know, wouldn't she? "Not yet. We'll wait until we have the dragon summoned." Cooler lied with a practiced ease. "The risk of being interrupted by Genome then will be lowest."
"Sounds fine by me." The swordsman tried to be casual but he saw the anxious glance sent Zangya's way. "As long as get the big guy back before that Android finds us. We won't stand a chance otherwise."
"Agreed." The word was like acid on his tongue. This felt so much like the cat and mouse games of politics he'd play with his brother when they were younger.
Before he had the power to just make things his. This nonsense of deception and half-truths was too much effort for someone in his position.
"What will we do with the extra wishes then?" Bujin inquired.
Power and time. That's all he wanted.
"We'll see if this dragon can rid us of the Android nuisance."
Nappa put a boot to the Namekian's chest. To Lord Slug, it might as well have been the planet itself for how little he could budge it. He swung at the Saiyan but the bald man just caught it with ease. He twisted and Slug's arm was ripped off in a moment. The Super Namekian howled in pain.
"This was cathartic." The golden light left him. "Anymore though and I'll be too much like my old self for my liking. A cruel bastard he was. You're lucky you're fighting me and not him."
The boot left him.
"Kakarot taught me a valuable lesson in mercy when he spared me the first time we met." Nappa reached out to him and offered the Namekian a hand. "I don't believe you deserve that mercy but I'll grant it to you anyways."
Slug looked at the hand and slowly, but surely, a sheer blinding rage unlike any he'd felt before rose in the depths of his very soul. This brute thought to grant mercy to him? Lord Slug?! He was destined to rule, to carry on the legacy of his people, and this monkey thought himself so far above as to grant him compassion?!
Slug grabbed the hand.
Then let loose all his remaining power in a beam from his mouth right into Nappa's face. A titanic explosion followed and the grip on the Namekian's hand loosened. He waved away the smoke in his face as he coughed but the mild discomfort of his lungs was nothing compared to the feeling of victory that came with it!
The scarred Namekian brushed off his clothes with his remaining hand as he stood. "Fool, no one offers mercy to Lord Slug."
A hand fell onto his shoulder. "I'll be honest; I was hoping for this." The scream that followed was cut off a moment later as Nappa vaporized Slug. A cool breeze came through moments later and swept the remaining dust away. Nappa sighed.
"Thank Kami I wasn't that dumb."
The Saiyan reached out with his senses and found Raditz seemingly surrounded by hundreds of relatively powerful signatures. He was fighting someone who was actually pretty strong. The hell were they doing over there?
In a flash, he went over to see what was going on.
The two Super Saiyans were going at one another with barbarous ferocity as the rest of their kin watched in awe at the displays of power. Vegeta feinted to the right and Raditz slipped away right into his two-handed axe handle. The low class warrior flipped over and hit the ground feet first. He looked up and leapt to the side as Vegeta dropped his knees where he once stood.
Raditz bounced back and crashed into the King with a clothesline that flipped him over and sent spittle flying. He turned and crashed his shin into the Elite's side. Vegeta let out a choked gasp as he barreled through several empty ruins.
The low class warrior grabbed at his shoulder and rolled it around. "That all you got, Napoleon Complex? I'm not even using that much power and you're barely making me sweat."
Dozens of tons of concrete and steel were vaporized in an instant as Vegeta screamed his way out. "You're holding back?! On me?!" Vegeta roared as his fiery aura grew to new heights. "I AM YOUR KING! SHOW ME THE RESPECT I DESERVE AND GIVE ME EVERYTHING YOU'VE GOT!"
Vegeta kicked off and jets of flame erupted behind him. All the Elites around them could see, before they were blown away by the waves of force, was that their ruler suddenly transformed into a beam of violent light.
Raditz tilted to the left. He shot the King a sly wink as he shot passed him feet first. "Oh, you almost got me!" Vegeta grabbed the earth beneath him and opened up a fresh wound in the planet as his momentum slowed for just a moment. With another kick, he rocketed back towards the low class warrior.
Raditz blocked the flying knee with his hands and a hundred bright flashes engulfed the duo. Bolts of lightning chewed through the devastation around them. Glass was left in their wake. Vegeta grabbed at the low class's hair and lifted his fist.
"DIE!"
The moment he brought his fist down, the two Saiyans were engulfed in a super-heated dome of ki. Moments later, the energy was seemingly shunted upwards into a ray of horrendous golden power that pierced the heavens above. For moments afterward, it was daylight on all sides of the planet.
The attack quickly died down. Vegeta was barely able to stand with breaths heaving in and out of his chest. If he wasn't already dead, that would've been a suicide attack. It had to have killed-!
"Ouch, that's the closest thing to damage you've done since I've gotten here." Raditz waved away the smoke as he inspected his singed hair. The earthling Saiyan was covered in bruises, burns, and shallow cuts but generally unharmed. He let go of his golden mane and coughed into his elbow. His legs were wobbling. "Awe man, you know how long it takes to make this hair look good?"
Something broke inside of Vegeta. He wouldn't- couldn't stand for this mockery! "Will you take this seriously, you clown?!"
The King's back bulged out as a blow far too fast for him landed in his gut. He retched and gagged as he was forced to use the other Saiyan's arm to stay standing.
"No, because that's what you want." Raditz tossed him done like he was little more than garbage. "Hey, remember that tantrum you had before I went to Earth?"
Vegeta could hardly focus; there were at least some broken ribs. "N-no..."
"I do." The Super Saiyan raised his leg and stomped it into the King's stomach. His boot was promptly covered in the blood and spittle that flew out of the Elite's mouth. "Taking you seriously. That's what you've always wanted! You couldn't stand being treated with anything less than reverence. Oh, it must've killed your soul every time Frieza humiliated you!" Raditz stomped again and the Vegeta answered with gurgles as his hair turned black. "So you took it out on anyone weaker! This is karma as far as I'm concerned! The 'low class' warrior doesn't need to try to humiliate you!"
The Elite groaned as a hand roughly grabbed at his hair and pulled him up. His Otherworldly body was the only reason he was conscious. Raditz forced him to look at his fellow Elites. Beneath the clear horror of seeing their King so utterly dominated, there was a shame in his fellow Saiyans. Shame at him.
"This is what your bullshit system of Elites and low class gets you! It's left you all weak and pitiful! Without it, us remaining Saiyans have all unlocked the legendary power of the Super Saiyan! Both low class and Elite had the capability but your desire for something to crush beneath your boot heels left you all complacent and soft!"
Raditz lazily tossed Vegeta to them. "Frankly put, the Saiyans deserved what Frieza did to us."
With those final words, he blasted them all away in one fell swoop. All that was left of the Saiyan race now was a few scraps.
"You alright?"
Raditz nearly flew out of his skin as he instantly twisted to face Nappa. The older Saiyan looked conflicted. "Don't sneak up on me like that! I nearly blasted you."
Nappa opened his mouth to reply but seemingly thought better of it as he looked to where Vegeta and his army used to be.
"Sounded like you've been holding that whole talk in for a while."
He nodded. "Yeah, it's something I figured out not long after after you and I turned ascended for the first time. There's nothing special about any of us but look at where we are now." Raditz kicked at some dust. "I wish our predecessors figured that out before it was too late."
"I helped perpetuate it along Vegeta even after the extinction of our race." Nappa closed his eyes as the memories, once sources of pride for the warrior, now brought nothing but shame. "I'm sorr-"
"Stop it." Raditz held up a hand to his former superior. "What's done is done. You've more than made up for it in the last few years."
"You're a better man than me, Raditz."
The younger Saiyan barked a laugh. "That just means you have too low of an opinion of yourself, Nappa! Now enough of this reminiscing..."
"There's still a mess to clean up."
"Well, Goku, is this what you wanted?" Seventeen yelled as he blasted away another dozen of the monsters that had suddenly appeared.
"Uh, yeah but," The Saiyan leapt and kicked away what looked to him like a goblin. "I was kinda hoping for one strong guy, y'know?"
The android rolled his eyes.
The duo had tore through the invading army of monsters as they poured through the blackened portals into the city. These guys weren't like the other beings that had appeared. They were all alive and kicking! As much as their power towered over the army, there were so many bodies in the way that their forward momentum had been mostly arrested.
Behind this tide stood one. A small figure hidden beneath a white cloak with its hands raised. A fissure of crimson tore the sky open.
"Hold, my warriors! The Makyo Star will rise on us this glorious day and the universe shall know our wrath!"
Shin dragged himself through the piles of Otherworld's strongest warriors. They were little more than breathing corpses now. The screams of the still conscious haunted his mind. She was toying with them all, it was all a game. Why did he think they stood a chance?
Janemba paced alongside him with a satisfied grin on its face like she had just gone through an excellent meal and dessert had been presented. The Supreme Kai needed distance; whatever she was, for she was no demon he recognized, the negative energy she was giving off only grew stronger as they threw themselves impotently at her.
He could only see what was in front of him. The screams in his head, the agony of his body, those horrid visions...he couldn't concentrate. Instantaneous Movement, his lifeline, needed just the slightest moment of calm but she would allow none. She raised her hand for a final blow.
"Hey, freakshow!" Janemba flinched harder from that insult than from any blows they'd delivered. The demon turned with a snarl as Galech held out her remaining arm. "Yeah, you heard me, you purple bitch!" The demon stumbled back as another phantom strike threw it off balance. "Now!"
Papoi leapt up from among the fallen warriors and wrapped Janemba in a bear hug. "I've got you in my hands, rotten fiend!" Galech rocketed forward in a burst of speed and slapped her hand down on the disoriented demon's face.
Galech lit up with glee as she pulled away the purple monster's power. "Let's see how you handl-hurk!" Black bile erupted from her mouth, eyes, and nose and the woman was forced to separate from Janemba. She grabbed at her throat, horror written across her features.
"Galech! Are you-Gah!" His catch warped out of his grasp and a knee was planted deep inside his gut.
They brought down their axe onto the juvenile's neck. thirty-two down; a hundred and four to go.
Papoi fell face first. Janemba brought down her heel into his skull in an axe kick. Blood splattered all over both her leg and Galech herself. The woman hardly noticed; the black bile didn't stop pouring from her. A thousand horrors played in her mind every moment.
And Janemba reveled in the trauma.
She rested her palm on Galech's head and pushed down on the heavenly warrior's skull with all the effort of pressing a button on a remote. The bile burst from her body like an overfilled water balloon. Some splashed on Janemba's face and she licked at it; her sharp grin widened ever further.
Shin watched the reduction of one of their most promising warriors into little more than a stain on the ground and did nothing. That thing across from him just flicked its hand and returned its attention to him. That last ditch effort was little more than a momentary distraction. The fear that gripped him was paralyzing.
"You need help, buddy?" He whirled around at the sudden voice behind him. It was the former Kai of the South Galaxy! The disgraced deity nearly fell back in shock. "Supreme Kai?! What are you doing here?!"
Shin glanced behind his fellow Kai and spotted three other warriors he didn't recognize. He should be asking them the same thing!
"You fools! Why have you come here to your doom?!" He half-shouted as jumped to his feet and twisted back to keep an eye on Janemba. She was just standing there. Waiting. "We need to leave, we need Beerus!"
"N-now, sir, let's not get too hasty!"
"Let him get out of here." The tallest among them commanded. Shin thought he looked familiar but he was too rattled to put a name to the face. "I can take care of this." The fool approached the demon. Damn their ignorance! They didn't know what they were doing!
Janemba seemed to be excited by the challenge approaching and lifted a hand. Hell itself responded and Otherworld's warriors were collectively impaled on obsidian spikes. A chorus of screams and choking gasps surrounded them.
"Come on, sir, we can't have that thing kill you." The Supreme Kai could only stare in disbelief as South Kai tried to pick him up. The pink deity leaned into the Kai's ear. "They're only gonna hold it off for so long. We need to leave."
Shin nodded reluctantly. Otherworld's best fell to this beast like wheat beneath a scythe. It would be pointless to throw his life away to try and stop someone else acting reckless. With that, the two disappeared.
Bardock muttered after they left.
"That was the fourth one."
Announcement!
There'll be no chapters for Devil From The Heavens or An Unburdened Fury in January! I'm taking a brief break from writing and will be coming back with a new chapter for AUF in mid-February with DFTH coming after.
Author's Notes
A few days late but here's the next chapter! An update on everyone save for Genome. We'll see how he's getting on with dad in the next chapter.
Anyways, whew, the Christmas season is stressful as always getting everybody a gift. Luckily, I've pretty much gotten everything. Everyone asks me for a gift but, tbh, I don't really ever want for much. x.x
And when I do want something, it's like a 'save for a few months/years' type gift. Real First World Problems shit. Ah well.
Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I should have a chapter out for DFTH by the end of the month.
Review Responses!
SuperSaiyajin4Vegeta: Yes and, unfortunately, yes.
twisterblake2015: Thank you!
fightingchampion: Not much as you can see.
Doctor Snake Eater: Evil is rated E for Everyone.
Jutten: While I love the movie, it's biggest knock was how Janemba's creation didn't seem to play out in his abilities. Other than weakening the barrier between the afterlife and the living world, he didn't really do much that reflected his origin otherwise which is a shame.
DeMightyLubu: While I'm familiar with Demon Bulma, I can't say FemJanemba was inspired by her.
The Rocha: I'm really leaning into the Cosmic Horror aspect for Janemba. I'd honestly loved to see Dragonball with its own take on it. Buu was kinda that but didn't quite nail it for me. Also, I did not forget Kibito in this chapter if you're wondering. Where he is will be revealed next chapter.
AxDevilman: Of course I did! I loved their mutually antagonistic dynamics lol.
Flen99: Here's hoping you enjoyed them! And the subsequent 48 chapters!