Chapter 11: Twilight of the Gods
For those who knew him in his prime it was...unexpected, certainly. For those who had never before laid eyes on him, it was nothing short of ludicrous.
As Bardock and Fionn stepped forward into the murky recesses of the hut, a vague outline of the Namekian Elder began to form in front of their eyes. They had been expecting someone a bit more imposing to greet them, especially considering that the Senior Elder was the most respected and well-worn of the entire race.
Well-worn, without a doubt.
The Elder, whose face and, indeed, his frame, was still hidden from view, beckoned awkwardly to his aide, a young Namek standing steadfastly beside his enormous chair. The Namek responded instantly, as if the order had been given by the original Saichorou himself. He rushed soundlessly towards a nearby window and lifted aside the small plate of metallic material which covered it. Light flooded the interior of the hut, illuminating the faces of the six beings present.
As Bardock and Fionn finally caught glimpse of the long-awaited Dende, supposedly the creature destined to end their quest, they could not prevent themselves from undergoing a sharp intake of breath.
He was nothing short of...ancient.
His skin, which no longer shone with the usual lustre of an adult Namek, was wrinkled and pale. His visage was both unfocused and unsteady, as his body shook with the labours of age. Even his hands clung desperately to his long wooden staff, a piece of distorted wood which seemed as frail as its owner.
Yet, behind the misleading façade, none of the huts' occupants could miss the glint of awareness and intelligence which shone from the eyes of the enfeebled Namek.
A smile crossed his timeworn lips.
"Piccolo...?" he wheezed, in a voice which sounded like an incomprehensible whisper. "It can't be you..."
A long silence betrayed the unspoken dialogue between these two old friends. As they stared at each other, both felt an undeniable longing for times long past, when both of them were young and well, and the possibilities of the universe were limitless.
"It is me, Dende", Piccolo eventually replied. "It's good to see you again."
With that, he walked forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, perhaps leaning harder than he had intended.
"Heh, be careful," Dende spluttered. "This old body isn't as strong as it used to be. I bruise rather easily these days, I'm afraid."
Piccolo withdrew immediately, and Bardock would have sworn that he distinctly saw a brief look of...fear on his face.
The Namek bowed his head slightly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realise."
Dende laboriously raised a hand, then did his best to give a nonchalant wave.
"It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
He looked past Piccolo at his 3 comrades. One he recognised, one was unfamiliar, but the other one...
Even through his blurred vision, there was something undeniably familiar about the warrior with the Saiya-jin ki.
He extended a gnarled digit and pointed it in his direction.
"You," he muttered. "Possess a countenance well known to these eyes. Or is old age playing tricks with my mind?"
He spluttered forth a debilitated laugh.
"I daresay that you are a member of the Son bloodline. The image bears some similarity. Is this why Piccolo has brought you before me? Am I staring at Goku's great-grandson?"
"Wrong direction," Bardock stated coolly. "You're staring at his father."
"Interesting indeed." Dende clasped his hands. "More interesting is the fact that you were allowed to return from the afterlife and seek my counsel, but well, for the moment at least, that is not important. Tell me, what is it that you have come to ask...?"
"Simple question, really." Bardock stated confidently. "Piccolo here tells me that the Terran dragonballs have followed you here to Namek in order to undergo their regeneration period. I'd like you to tell me exactly where they all are."
"I thought as much," said Dende. "I am well aware of the sacrifice that was made, and believe me, it is greatly appreciated. Were it not for your offspring, the Terran dragonballs would have been lost forever in the sands of time. I never got the opportunity to thank him, and I know fine well that I will not live to see the day when he returned, some 50 years from this point in time."
"50 years?" all four uttered almost simultaneously.
"You can't be serious..." Bardock growled. "They're only supposed to take a year".
"Indeed they are, but even you must realise that they were being distorted, poisoned, if you will, by an immensely powerful force," Dende said. "One does not recover from such interference in a single year. In fact, were it not for the fact that Goku donated his life energy towards the process, it is more than likely that they would never have recovered. The negative energy that had built up within them had taken on a life of it's own, and it will not allow itself to be vanquished all that easily."
"You mean the Evil Shenlongs..." Bardock muttered.
"I do indeed. An almighty Genki Dama destroyed their corporeal bodies, their sole lifeline to the physical world, but within the balls their power is much greater than it ever was in this world. Even Goku, most powerful of all warriors to ever inhabit our macrocosm, cannot overcome them in any short amount of time. A century was the time given by Shenlong as his estimate, and that is all we have to go by. We cannot speed up, slow down, or affect this time in any way. All we can do is be there when it has run it's course."
"Have you been listening to me?" Bardock said in exasperation. "That's the whole point of why we're here, and all we need now is for you to tell us where the dragonballs are. I'm sure we can find them within 50 years. This planet's not that big..."
"Oh," Dende underwent a sharp intake of breath, followed by a look of genuine surprise. "You think they're here?"
Bardock frowned. Damn senile old Namek was beginning to annoy him...
"Piccolo said that they follow you wherever you go when they're regenerating," he uttered through gritted teeth. "And in case you haven't noticed, you're here..."
"Oh indeed, indeed." Dende leaned back and clapped his hands together. "That is the case when normal regeneration is concerned, but as I have expressly stated, this is not normal regeneration. Or have you not been listening, father of Goku...?"
"Apparently not," he spat angrily.
"Oh how simple the minds of Saiya-jin are. Magnificent fighters, but when it comes to thinking..." He shook himself out of his doddering rant.
"You see, my friends. Just as fire is required to fight fire, or so the saying goes, so too is energy of a similar kind required to help battle itself..."
He waited, as if expecting everyone to immediately jump to a conclusion. However, not a single being in the hut responded.
"What I mean is, since spiritual energy is what has infected the dragonballs, spiritual energy is required to defeat it. That's why Goku was unable to help from here in our physical world. Now, usually, the balls would return here to me during regeneration, but this time they've gone somewhere where they can acquire the energy necessary to help them recover."
A look of realisation dawned on everyone's face.
"The afterlife..." Fionn gasped.
"Now you've got it," Dende replied gleefully. "A world composed entirely of spiritual energy. Where else would they go...?
"But... I don't understand it," Fionn queried. "How can they cross the barrier between worlds like that...?"
"They aren't governed by the same rules we are. They go where they please, and at present they wish to be in the afterlife. In fact, their very survival depends upon it."
"But where? The afterlife is as big as a hundred million galaxies put together. How are we supposed to find them in such an expanse?"
"I am not the person you need to ask, for it has been many years since I last entered the afterlife, and much has changed in it's landscape since then. But..."
He looked at Piccolo.
"I saw a familiar look in your eyes just now, old friend. Your years as God of Earth have left their mark on you. You still understand the dragonballs and their ways. When you realised that the balls were in the afterlife, you also realised exactly where they would be, am I right?
Everyone looked at Piccolo in surprise.
"I did," he stated. "It is a place I have been before, and a place to which I do not wish to return. But, for the sake of Son, I will venture there once again..."
"Excellent," Dende smiled. "Your courage has not abandoned you, I see. I only wish that I could aid you on your quest, but as you can see, my body grows weary. Even my ability to heal has left me."
"Not to worry," Piccolo replied calmly. "Your wisdom has helped us greatly, and I swear that I will return here before your days run out."
Dende nodded gratefully, and a glazed look came into his eyes.
The young Namek that attended him stepped forward.
"The Elder needs his rest. Please leave."
All four of them did so, but not before Piccolo cast one last glance back at his sleeping friend. Then, without a word, he swept out of the hut, where Bardock, Fionn and Tenshinhan awaited him.
"Where to?" Tenshinhan enquired.
Piccolo drew in a long hard breath.
"To the Check-In station, first of all. I have to something to tell Enma Daiou before we embark once more."
Tenshinhan nodded, then Bardock, Fionn and Piccolo placed a hand on his right shoulder and back.
In a silent flash of movement, the four warriors disappeared from Namek-Sei...
For those who knew him in his prime it was...unexpected, certainly. For those who had never before laid eyes on him, it was nothing short of ludicrous.
As Bardock and Fionn stepped forward into the murky recesses of the hut, a vague outline of the Namekian Elder began to form in front of their eyes. They had been expecting someone a bit more imposing to greet them, especially considering that the Senior Elder was the most respected and well-worn of the entire race.
Well-worn, without a doubt.
The Elder, whose face and, indeed, his frame, was still hidden from view, beckoned awkwardly to his aide, a young Namek standing steadfastly beside his enormous chair. The Namek responded instantly, as if the order had been given by the original Saichorou himself. He rushed soundlessly towards a nearby window and lifted aside the small plate of metallic material which covered it. Light flooded the interior of the hut, illuminating the faces of the six beings present.
As Bardock and Fionn finally caught glimpse of the long-awaited Dende, supposedly the creature destined to end their quest, they could not prevent themselves from undergoing a sharp intake of breath.
He was nothing short of...ancient.
His skin, which no longer shone with the usual lustre of an adult Namek, was wrinkled and pale. His visage was both unfocused and unsteady, as his body shook with the labours of age. Even his hands clung desperately to his long wooden staff, a piece of distorted wood which seemed as frail as its owner.
Yet, behind the misleading façade, none of the huts' occupants could miss the glint of awareness and intelligence which shone from the eyes of the enfeebled Namek.
A smile crossed his timeworn lips.
"Piccolo...?" he wheezed, in a voice which sounded like an incomprehensible whisper. "It can't be you..."
A long silence betrayed the unspoken dialogue between these two old friends. As they stared at each other, both felt an undeniable longing for times long past, when both of them were young and well, and the possibilities of the universe were limitless.
"It is me, Dende", Piccolo eventually replied. "It's good to see you again."
With that, he walked forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, perhaps leaning harder than he had intended.
"Heh, be careful," Dende spluttered. "This old body isn't as strong as it used to be. I bruise rather easily these days, I'm afraid."
Piccolo withdrew immediately, and Bardock would have sworn that he distinctly saw a brief look of...fear on his face.
The Namek bowed his head slightly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realise."
Dende laboriously raised a hand, then did his best to give a nonchalant wave.
"It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
He looked past Piccolo at his 3 comrades. One he recognised, one was unfamiliar, but the other one...
Even through his blurred vision, there was something undeniably familiar about the warrior with the Saiya-jin ki.
He extended a gnarled digit and pointed it in his direction.
"You," he muttered. "Possess a countenance well known to these eyes. Or is old age playing tricks with my mind?"
He spluttered forth a debilitated laugh.
"I daresay that you are a member of the Son bloodline. The image bears some similarity. Is this why Piccolo has brought you before me? Am I staring at Goku's great-grandson?"
"Wrong direction," Bardock stated coolly. "You're staring at his father."
"Interesting indeed." Dende clasped his hands. "More interesting is the fact that you were allowed to return from the afterlife and seek my counsel, but well, for the moment at least, that is not important. Tell me, what is it that you have come to ask...?"
"Simple question, really." Bardock stated confidently. "Piccolo here tells me that the Terran dragonballs have followed you here to Namek in order to undergo their regeneration period. I'd like you to tell me exactly where they all are."
"I thought as much," said Dende. "I am well aware of the sacrifice that was made, and believe me, it is greatly appreciated. Were it not for your offspring, the Terran dragonballs would have been lost forever in the sands of time. I never got the opportunity to thank him, and I know fine well that I will not live to see the day when he returned, some 50 years from this point in time."
"50 years?" all four uttered almost simultaneously.
"You can't be serious..." Bardock growled. "They're only supposed to take a year".
"Indeed they are, but even you must realise that they were being distorted, poisoned, if you will, by an immensely powerful force," Dende said. "One does not recover from such interference in a single year. In fact, were it not for the fact that Goku donated his life energy towards the process, it is more than likely that they would never have recovered. The negative energy that had built up within them had taken on a life of it's own, and it will not allow itself to be vanquished all that easily."
"You mean the Evil Shenlongs..." Bardock muttered.
"I do indeed. An almighty Genki Dama destroyed their corporeal bodies, their sole lifeline to the physical world, but within the balls their power is much greater than it ever was in this world. Even Goku, most powerful of all warriors to ever inhabit our macrocosm, cannot overcome them in any short amount of time. A century was the time given by Shenlong as his estimate, and that is all we have to go by. We cannot speed up, slow down, or affect this time in any way. All we can do is be there when it has run it's course."
"Have you been listening to me?" Bardock said in exasperation. "That's the whole point of why we're here, and all we need now is for you to tell us where the dragonballs are. I'm sure we can find them within 50 years. This planet's not that big..."
"Oh," Dende underwent a sharp intake of breath, followed by a look of genuine surprise. "You think they're here?"
Bardock frowned. Damn senile old Namek was beginning to annoy him...
"Piccolo said that they follow you wherever you go when they're regenerating," he uttered through gritted teeth. "And in case you haven't noticed, you're here..."
"Oh indeed, indeed." Dende leaned back and clapped his hands together. "That is the case when normal regeneration is concerned, but as I have expressly stated, this is not normal regeneration. Or have you not been listening, father of Goku...?"
"Apparently not," he spat angrily.
"Oh how simple the minds of Saiya-jin are. Magnificent fighters, but when it comes to thinking..." He shook himself out of his doddering rant.
"You see, my friends. Just as fire is required to fight fire, or so the saying goes, so too is energy of a similar kind required to help battle itself..."
He waited, as if expecting everyone to immediately jump to a conclusion. However, not a single being in the hut responded.
"What I mean is, since spiritual energy is what has infected the dragonballs, spiritual energy is required to defeat it. That's why Goku was unable to help from here in our physical world. Now, usually, the balls would return here to me during regeneration, but this time they've gone somewhere where they can acquire the energy necessary to help them recover."
A look of realisation dawned on everyone's face.
"The afterlife..." Fionn gasped.
"Now you've got it," Dende replied gleefully. "A world composed entirely of spiritual energy. Where else would they go...?
"But... I don't understand it," Fionn queried. "How can they cross the barrier between worlds like that...?"
"They aren't governed by the same rules we are. They go where they please, and at present they wish to be in the afterlife. In fact, their very survival depends upon it."
"But where? The afterlife is as big as a hundred million galaxies put together. How are we supposed to find them in such an expanse?"
"I am not the person you need to ask, for it has been many years since I last entered the afterlife, and much has changed in it's landscape since then. But..."
He looked at Piccolo.
"I saw a familiar look in your eyes just now, old friend. Your years as God of Earth have left their mark on you. You still understand the dragonballs and their ways. When you realised that the balls were in the afterlife, you also realised exactly where they would be, am I right?
Everyone looked at Piccolo in surprise.
"I did," he stated. "It is a place I have been before, and a place to which I do not wish to return. But, for the sake of Son, I will venture there once again..."
"Excellent," Dende smiled. "Your courage has not abandoned you, I see. I only wish that I could aid you on your quest, but as you can see, my body grows weary. Even my ability to heal has left me."
"Not to worry," Piccolo replied calmly. "Your wisdom has helped us greatly, and I swear that I will return here before your days run out."
Dende nodded gratefully, and a glazed look came into his eyes.
The young Namek that attended him stepped forward.
"The Elder needs his rest. Please leave."
All four of them did so, but not before Piccolo cast one last glance back at his sleeping friend. Then, without a word, he swept out of the hut, where Bardock, Fionn and Tenshinhan awaited him.
"Where to?" Tenshinhan enquired.
Piccolo drew in a long hard breath.
"To the Check-In station, first of all. I have to something to tell Enma Daiou before we embark once more."
Tenshinhan nodded, then Bardock, Fionn and Piccolo placed a hand on his right shoulder and back.
In a silent flash of movement, the four warriors disappeared from Namek-Sei...