((Author's note:
I really enjoyed writing this chapter, and chapter 29.
I really don't have much else to say about it.
Just a note, Fhuar is a Celtic word for…
You guessed it, Cold.
This part of the story really has my muse kicked, along with reading some really great stories on
Comments are always appreciated.
As always, Thanks!
-beepx22))
Chapter 28
Bea looked at the Rossolian. "I won't apologize. What we did then, is not forgivable, and I have too much pride to wish for forgiveness. But, I know now what we did was wrong."
The Rossolian scoffed. Bea's left arm snaked out and grasped him by the neck of his tunic. He lifted the lavender hued creature to eye height.
"But make no mistake, I will not standby while Fhuar continues his reign of destruction. Now, power up this vessel, and lets go."
The Rossolian swallowed. Then he frowned. "Lord Fhuar took the reactor crystals with him, this ship has no drive now…"
Bea closed his eyes in frustration. With Icer's ship heavily damaged, he had really hoped that to claim this vessel.
"Why not use your instant transmission trick to take us back to your ship, Bea?" Icer asked softly.
Eyes still closed, Bea replied. "It's too risky to do without an energy to lock onto. Guess we'll do it the old fashioned way and fly."
"Uh, Bea…" Pikada said. Bea opened his eyes and looked at Pikada, who was looking at the Rossolian. Bea turned his eyes to the creature. It was quickly turning purple instead of lavender, it's eyes bulged. Bea dropped the alien.
"Sorry, about that. I couldn't feel your energy…"
The creature said nothing but rubbed its throat gingerly.
"Well," Bea turned, "let's go."
They all followed him, minus the Rossolian, out of the ship and into the air.
As they flew, Bea explained to Icer about how, many years ago, their five member team had conquered Planet Rossoli and sold it through a broker to Frieza.
"It's the planet where I got my sword." Pikada held his cybernetic arm out, "which later was used to build my arm."
They landed at the ship, which had apparently been left alone. Within an hour they were space-borne.
Fhuar though, had a head start, and the Trio didn't know his destination.
"Let's rendezvous with Icer's ship, transfer supplies, and we'll head out of the system. Soon as I can sense Ki again, we'll try to locate that son of a bitch." Bea said as they breached the atmosphere.
And so they followed their plan, four hours passed as they moved supplies, and another day as they roamed out the Star system's heliosphere.
And still none of them could sense Ki, nor could Icer's scouter detect it.
It was clear the Fhuar had somehow sabotaged their senses.
Two more days passed, and finally Bea grew weary of not being able to detect energy.
"It's maddening!" He said to no one. He stood in the storage of their ship, looking with some interest at his Pod.
"Clearly, Fhuar has attached a scrambler, maybe multiple to our vessel." Icer said.
"Yeah." Grumbled Bea. "Sensor sweeping hasn't found them though."
"You're thinking of leaving?" Asked Pikada.
"Yeah."
"Do you have a plan for us to track you?" Icer tilted his head quizzically as he asked.
"Yeah."
Bea punched the release and the door of the pod swung down.
He looked up. "We can still detect Icer's ship back in the Rossoli system, right?"
This time Pikada said, "Yeah."
Bea grinned and slapped a small device on the side of his pod.
"I'll be setting my hibernation timer for one day. I'll try to contact you when I wake up. If you don't hear from me, head to Earth. We can regroup there."
Bea and Pikada bumped fist, then Bea nodded at Icer. "Good luck."
Bea stashed his gear and sat in the acceleration seat. He quickly went through his check list, set his timers, gave Pikada and Icer a thumbs up through the tinted visor. Then he took a deep breath and slapped the launch controls. One of the portals on the side of ship irised open and Bea was launched into space. He was asleep before his pod was out of sight of the SMG ship.
OoOoOoOoO
"Three days, Lord Fhuar, before we rendezvous with E-Arth." The navigator said as Fhuar walked onto his bridge. The Ice Demon said nothing as he took his seat. As soon as he settled a servant approached with a tray of drinks to choose from. Fhuar picked up a brandy from his home world and sipped it contentedly.
"No pursuit?" He asked his tactical officer.
"No, Lord, the situation remains, our last contact with Icer's ship saw them heading away from us. The Ki signal disrupters are operating as planned, and they've shown no indicators of knowing how to disable them."
Fhuar smiled. "Good." He turned to an advisor, "Somen, you are sure that they need Ki for their little trick to work?"
"Yes, Lord. Though it's possible to use instant transmission with no target, it's impossible, even for the master class, to focus across distances of more than a few miles without an anchor target."
Fhuar waved Somen away with that news. He turned back to the screen and watched the lightyears drift by.
OoOoOoOoO
Bea's eyes blinked open. He took a deep breath of the cloyingly sweet air. The chemical stimulant used to clear the mind after hibernation mingled with the little of the sleeping drug for a few moments. Hallucinations were a pretty common occurrence just as you woke.
He shook his head, immediately taking a sip of water after.
Then he closed his eyes and searched. Energy was everywhere around him, like a million colors splattered across a great canvas.
He smiled as he sought out familiar patterns. There was master Udon, Price Vegeta, Emperor Yarbayar and His Majordomo Chack.
But no Fhuar, No Pikada, No Icer. "So it was a Ki screen…" he said to the padded interior of his pod.
Bea sent a coded message and waited. No response came.
He touched the screen of his control console, punching up Earth from its internal memory. The screen calculated a five day trip from his current position. He quietly ate a ration bar, drank another jug of water, then initiated the autopilot. He thought as the sedative set in, that perhaps he should abandon the pod and use instant transmission. He dismissed this, spacecraft were beginning to be difficult to find.
Bea's eyes slid closed.
OoOoOoOoO
"Passing the orbit of the fourth planet, Sire." The non mutant arcosian navigating the ship spoke, breaking Fhuar from his daydream.
He looked at his screens. "This world seems like it's bustling with activity and resources. I wonder why Frieza didn't add it to his collection?"
He flipped the images to a relief map of the planet Earth. "No matter, it won't matter for long." Dozens of cities popped up on the map. Fhuar steepled his fingers as he decided which one he'd destroy first.
OoOoOoOoO
Vegeta awoke with a slight pain in his head. "Damnit." He said as he sat up. Bulma lay next to him, her legs sprawled under a heavy blanket.
Vegeta felt something very akin to fear. He couldn't sense Bulma's ki.
"Oh, No…" he said nearly panicked. He reached for her knowing she'd be cold and clammy to his fingertips. The certainty that she was dead pushing all rational thought aside.
She stirred, a smile spreading across her face. "Jeez, Vegeta, three times in one night?"
He pulled his hand away. Relived of his concern he relaxed. Then he realized he still couldn't feel her energy.
He couldn't feel anyone's Ki.
Vegeta slid from the bed and stealthily left the bedchamber.
Bulma watched him go, her thoughts perplexed.
OoOoOoOoO
Piccolo sat cross legged beneath a roaring waterfall. His energy flowed around him, rippling almost like the water downriver. He was completely dry despite to torrent of water that crashed on him. His meditation this night was well balanced. He could sense the movement near him. Insects and small animals competed with each other in the ever changing dynamic of the food chain. Even the surrounding foliage gave off a minute amount of ki.
Piccolo reveled in the peace and solitude.
Then it was as if someone had slammed a steel box over his face during a sun drenched noon. The vibrant white-noise of life turned off.
The change affected Piccolo greatly, his focus was obliterated. The waterfall crashed over him. His outfit was drenched and hung loosely around him. With his eyes open he saw that life continued around himself. With great trepidation he landed on the shore. He flew up into the sky, looking for the eerie glow from the nearest city.
Something was awry, but he had no clue what it was.
OoOoOoOoO
"Mooooooommy!" Angel's feet hit the floor before Piki's cry cut off. Next to her Yamcha snorted, scratched under his arm, and continued to snore the night away.
Angel entered her daughter's room. "What is it Piki, what's wrong."
The little demi-saiyan sat rocking on her bed, arms wrapped around a plush puppy, and her legs tucked under her. Tears ran down her cheeks and stained the puppy doll.
"It's quiet in my head." She said through sniffles. "It's quiet."
Angel's mind burned through the fog of sleep as she realized exactly what her daughter meant.
She scooped the girl up and went back to the room she and Yamcha shared. "Yamcha! Get up, somethings wrong. We need to get to the lookout!"
The former desert bandit stirred groggily. "What's up Ang?" He mumbled.
"Sense my energy." She said impatiently.
His eyes widened. "I can't!" He looked around the room and snagged his Gi.
"Let's go, I can take Piki…". His sentence was cut short as a blinding light ripped across the outskirts of the city.
Angel dove, pushing him down, and completely covering her daughter with her body. Golden energy flowed around her as her super Saiyan form took over.
She forced her Ki outwards into a shield just as the blast wave rolled over them.
The building collapsed around them.
OoOoOoOoO
The incoming message light blinked on the console of Bea's pod. The automatic routines diverted the call to a storage file. Bea slept on in dreamless Sleep. His pod only a day behind the SMG ship that held Pikada and Icer.
That ship, just a day behind Icer's.
OoOoOoOoO
Chi-Chi wailed at her son. At 16 her son Gohan had been instrumental in helping to raise Goten.
Now he stood in a gi, borrowed from his father's clothing drawers.
A gi that hadn't been worn since the defeat of Cell.
"I have to go, I have to. Dad's not here to defend Earth, and well honestly, that's my fault." He tied his belt are his waist and cinched it tighter.
"But what about Goten. What about me? You're going to leave us just like Goku!" She sobbed.
"Goten and you will be fine. Unless this turns out to be bad, then this is the only way to protect you."
Goten his behind Chi-Chi but he rushed forward and grabbed Gohan around the legs.
"Be safe. Gohan!" Goten cried.
"Don't worry, we'll be fine." He bent and hugged his little brother, marveling again at the resemblance to his father. "I love you, both. I'll be back soon."
With that Gohan stood and walked outside. In a flare of white energy he disappeared into the sunrise.
OoOoOoOoO
"Target one acquired, Lord Fhuar, it appears to be a Military depot on the outskirts of a major metropolitan area." His tactical officer updated him, but his eyes never left his screen.
Fhuar walked to the window view port, he shielded his eyes from the rising yellow sun that was popping above the dome of the lush blue and green planet. He drained the glass he held in his left hand. A silent toast to victory. He held the glass as shoulder height.
"Proceed."
The tactical officer's hand slapped down on a flashing imprint on his screen.
The lights dimmed slightly.
Fhuar released the heavy cut glass.
A crimson orb of energy rocketed away towards the planet.
It detonated on the planet at the same time the glass shattered.
Fhuar smiled a genuine smile.
OoOoOoOoO
Pikada suddenly focused on a noise hidden in the radio chatter from earth. He dialed in, and the familiar face of a ZTV reporter appeared
"To recap, a massive explosion has been reported near the West City Primary military base. Government officials haven't released a statement, but reports of damage extends through the entire city and its suburbs…"
He killed the volume. "Icer! What's our ETA to Earth?"
"About 5 hours." He said after checking the computer.
"Fuck. I think Fhuar is there."
Icer grunted.
OoOoOoOoO
"Second target acquired. It's a large research and manufacturing facility. Electromagnetic signals indicate it's the primary supplier for almost all technology on this planet. Ki cannon back at full charge." The Tactical officer said.
On the screen a expanse of domed buildings appeared.
Fhuar leaned forward. "Fire!"