Chapter 12: Calling All Heroes
The unrelenting floodgates of hell had swung wide open in horrible glory. The attacks seemed to come simultaneously, without any communication at all between the separated vile creatures waging war on both the human race and the beings living in Otherworld.
Otherworld
All it took was one glance at Otherworld's moon, and Nappa began his beastly transformation. From his nearly hairless skin, brown fur began to spurt forth, covering Nappa's entire body. His muscles bulged and expanded, stretching out his saiyan armor almost to its breaking point. The monkey- like tail hanging from his lower back grew along with him and matched his new appearance perfectly. With a long, fanged snout and dark, red eyes, Nappa was a menacing monster bigger than most of the buildings in the city.
"These little ones won't know what hit them! HA HA HA!" his voice boomed over the darkened compound. Nappa opened his horrible beast mouth as far as it would go and a huge ball of light grew in the void it created. The saiyan willed it to grow bigger and bigger, until his jaws could open no further. When it reached its full size, the monster (or Ooarzu) Nappa puked it out, launching the deadly projectile towards the Grand Kai's Mansion.
"These saiyans, they never cease to amaze me!" Cooler laughed as the yellow streak of energy lit up the night sky and cast its light over the other villains as it passed overhead. The others remained in awe as Nappa took complete control of the situation.
"What is that?" one of the South Kai's students screamed while running out of his dorm, "Oh no! Everybody run! We're under attack!"
Disbelief and pandemonium spread like wildfire but it was to no avail. Nobody could escape the blast as it ripped through the walls of the building like paper and detonated. Double shockwaves spread in an instant, vaporizing the heroes closest to its epicenter, and maiming the luckier ones. The Grand Kai's mansion was engulfed in flames, and those that had chosen to bunk elsewhere were now running to the aid of their friends or colleagues.
Ooarzu Nappa stormed into the citadel, sending large chunks of stone falling from the wall. As more of the perimeter gave way, his hairy, redwood tree sized legs pushed forward his massive body and tumbled the remainder of the section of the reinforced concrete. He stormed full speed towards the burning mansion and began to selectively stomp on the would-be rescuers as they feverish tried to put out the fires.
"Ha ha!" Nappa's voice roared in the darkness, "Nobody escapes alive!" His huge feet came down upon many in the near darkness, and the few that saw it coming could only see his evil red eyes before they were squashed into nothing.
"You heard the man! Clean the rest of the trash up!" Raditz screamed before he flew off at top speed to assist in the melee. Turliss and Cooler were soon to follow, and after a few moments of reluctance, Frieza, Cell, and the others joined in. Momentarily flashes of light filled the night sky as small skirmishes erupted all over the place. The villains had the element of surprise, and had the upper hand. Their combined power dwarfed anybody that challenged them. People were decapitated, their flesh was charred beyond recognition . . . the nastiness of this new terror cell knew no bounds.
In a matter of minutes, only rubble remained of what once was a spectacular and beautiful resort of the Grand Kai. The first phase of their plan was now complete.
Meanwhile, Back on Earth
"Whoa!" Dende said as he jumped back, "Did you feel that Mr. Popo?" Looking over to the caretaker of the lookout, he saw that Mr. Popo's watering was way off. The water poured from the can and onto the greens-keeper's shoes, soaking them.
"I felt it Dende," he finally replied.
"Me too,"
"Piccolo!" Dende shouted in excitement, "What brings you here?"
"The same thing that worries you . . ." the namek warrior responded.
Gohan, Trunks, and Goten landed on the lookout only a few seconds after Piccolo, and all of them had worried looks on their faces.
"I got that funny feeling in my stomach again," Trunks said.
"Yeah, me too," Goten agreed as he rubbed his belly.
"It was like a huge explosion of power just exploded all around the world. I'm worried that somebody with that type of power would only do so for a reason.
"It was Tien," Gohan interrupted," I'd recognize his energy level anywhere." The Lookout got quiet once again as they searched for the exact point that Tien was fighting, but before they were able to, another explosion of energy stung their senses.
"Ow!" Goten cried out as his inexperienced skills were overloaded by the instant input, "That hurt my head,"
The others noticed it and where quick to ascertain the situation, "That power was no joke. Nobody on Earth has that type of power. It wasn't coming from Earth either . . . it was faint but I'm sure that last surge came from Otherworld!" Piccolo declared.
"This is NOT good. I felt around a dozen more of that type of energy levels and about a hundred suddenly disappear without a trace," Gohan said, his eyes closed in concentration. Dende and Mr. Popo looked amazed as the events unfolded before them. As guardian, Dende knew he was powerless to do anything about it, but with Piccolo and the others there, at least they would stand a chance.
"Ahh geez!" Gohan said with a worried tone, "A few more power levels just vanished!"
"We can't stay here much longer. Gohan, Trunks, Goten, come on . . . we're heading to Otherworld!" Piccolo commanded as he placed two fingers on his forehead, "Dende, I want to contact Krillin immediately and have him find Tien."
"Why don't you guys help him?" Dende asked his former friend and guardian.
"Because . . . there was another power level I felt for only a moment. It was so quick, it felt like a ghost . . . but it was enormous. If we can't contain these people in Otherworld, then the universe doesn't stand a chance."
Dende nodded, and the group of four disappeared. He wondered though . . . he wondered if the other person he spoke of was . . . No, that couldn't be true. If it was, then all life as he knew it would be erased.
Campsite
Yamcha had already packed up his belongings. He was ready to head home. It was only the second day of the trip, but he knew that in all likeliness it was over the moment Goku left. And he was looking forward to being able to hang with his old friends for the last four months too!
"Hey Krillin, I'm gonna head out. If they come back, tell them I went off to do some training," Yamcha told his buddy.
"Yeah bro, whatever," Krillin said, barely able to contain his laughter.
"What's so funny?"
"Well, if you want me to lie to them, don't you want to come with something a bit more believable?" Krillin couldn't help it, and keeled over in laughter, "Yamcha, training? HA HA HA! That's a riot!"
Yamcha was noticeably irritated, his teeth grinding inside his mouth, "Oh yeah? Well I'll let you know that I DO plan on training!"
"Righttttt . . . SURE you do," Krillin joked back with his friend. As Krillin teased Yamcha a little more, a white streak zoomed over head. It sounded like an airliner flying overhead, but the two fighters knew better than to think that.
"Did that look a little like Chaozu, or was it just me?" Yamcha asked.
"Nah, you were right, but what was he in a hurry for?" Krillin responded, "Looked like he was carrying something too."
"Let's go find out . . ." Yamcha said. He took the skies immediately along with Krillin and came up behind Chaozu. It only took a second for Chaozu to notice them and stop.
"Thank goodness I found you!" Chaozu exclaimed, "Tien's in trouble, and the- "
"Slow down Chaozu, tell us what's going on," Krillin calmly asked.
"Whoa! Is that Baba!" Yamcha blurted out as Chaozu turned around.
"Yeah, Tien and I saved her from the Ginyu Force, that's how this whole thing got started."
"Don't be such a joker, we are serious Chaozu, tell us what really happened," Krillin said.
"He's . . . telling the truth," Baba managed to squeak out in a weakened voice.
"Baba, you're okay!" Chaozu shouted.
"Yeah . . . BUT GET ME DOWN FROM HERE! I HATE HEIGHTS!" she screamed
"We're almost to Master Roshi's house, you'll be safe there," Chaozu replied, "I'll tell you guys the rest of the story along the way."
The trio flew as fast as they could and arrived at Kame House in record time. After a quick explanation and much persuasion, the Turtle Hermit allowed his sister to stay with him, TEMPORARILY. Chaozu had managed to maintain a psychic link with Tien the entire time, but was unable to get a hold of him. It was as though Tien had shut himself off from the world.
"I'm worried, you guys we have to go now!" Chaozu commanded.
"Right, I'm ready," Yamcha had gone inside and put on his vintage Gi back from the days of training with Master Roshi. It still fit well, and the red dye hadn't faded at all after all those years without wear. Krillin was finding it harder to leave than he had expected . . .
"No 18, I want you to stay here. I can handle it!"
"Krillin, don't give me that, I can more than handle myself," # 18 countered, "You could use my help from what your other friends have said."
"But,"
"No, it's final. I'm going with you whether you like it or not," the beautiful blond harshly replied, "Mr. Roshi, could you look after Marin while we're gone?"
"Yeah, you can count on me, heh," Master Roshi replied as he kept a watchful eye on his sister.
18 walked over to her daughter that had been left inside and lovingly rubbed her hand over little Marin's blond hair, "Mommy and daddy are going out for a while, so Grandpa Roshi is going to be your babysitter, okay?" Marin nodded slowly, looking a little sad that her parents were leaving her, "Don't be worried, Puar and Oolong will keep you company, okay?" Eighteen gazed over at Oolong with an evil eye to make sure he understood.
"Oh yeah! We'll have lots of fun together!" the short pig looking shape- shifter nervously replied.
"Yamcha, watch out for yourself, okay?" Puar called out to her lifetime companion as she waved with her paws.
"Yeah Puar, I'll stop by and hang out when we get back," the cute shape- shifting cat almost cried but continued to exchange waves of the hand as Chaozu took off. Yamcha jumped up into the air and powered up, soaring fast to catch up with their white-skinned psychic friend. Krillin and 18 said their goodbyes to Marin and kissed her quickly on the cheek before taking to the great blue sky themselves. The waves crashed all around the tiny island of the Turtle Hermit, and the palm trees swayed in the warm wind of the tropical ocean. It was quiet, the calm before the storm . . .
--------------- Power Levels
Ooarzu Nappa: 13,000,000
Chaozu: 180,000 Krillin: 325,000 Yamcha: 260,000 # 18: 20,000,000
The unrelenting floodgates of hell had swung wide open in horrible glory. The attacks seemed to come simultaneously, without any communication at all between the separated vile creatures waging war on both the human race and the beings living in Otherworld.
Otherworld
All it took was one glance at Otherworld's moon, and Nappa began his beastly transformation. From his nearly hairless skin, brown fur began to spurt forth, covering Nappa's entire body. His muscles bulged and expanded, stretching out his saiyan armor almost to its breaking point. The monkey- like tail hanging from his lower back grew along with him and matched his new appearance perfectly. With a long, fanged snout and dark, red eyes, Nappa was a menacing monster bigger than most of the buildings in the city.
"These little ones won't know what hit them! HA HA HA!" his voice boomed over the darkened compound. Nappa opened his horrible beast mouth as far as it would go and a huge ball of light grew in the void it created. The saiyan willed it to grow bigger and bigger, until his jaws could open no further. When it reached its full size, the monster (or Ooarzu) Nappa puked it out, launching the deadly projectile towards the Grand Kai's Mansion.
"These saiyans, they never cease to amaze me!" Cooler laughed as the yellow streak of energy lit up the night sky and cast its light over the other villains as it passed overhead. The others remained in awe as Nappa took complete control of the situation.
"What is that?" one of the South Kai's students screamed while running out of his dorm, "Oh no! Everybody run! We're under attack!"
Disbelief and pandemonium spread like wildfire but it was to no avail. Nobody could escape the blast as it ripped through the walls of the building like paper and detonated. Double shockwaves spread in an instant, vaporizing the heroes closest to its epicenter, and maiming the luckier ones. The Grand Kai's mansion was engulfed in flames, and those that had chosen to bunk elsewhere were now running to the aid of their friends or colleagues.
Ooarzu Nappa stormed into the citadel, sending large chunks of stone falling from the wall. As more of the perimeter gave way, his hairy, redwood tree sized legs pushed forward his massive body and tumbled the remainder of the section of the reinforced concrete. He stormed full speed towards the burning mansion and began to selectively stomp on the would-be rescuers as they feverish tried to put out the fires.
"Ha ha!" Nappa's voice roared in the darkness, "Nobody escapes alive!" His huge feet came down upon many in the near darkness, and the few that saw it coming could only see his evil red eyes before they were squashed into nothing.
"You heard the man! Clean the rest of the trash up!" Raditz screamed before he flew off at top speed to assist in the melee. Turliss and Cooler were soon to follow, and after a few moments of reluctance, Frieza, Cell, and the others joined in. Momentarily flashes of light filled the night sky as small skirmishes erupted all over the place. The villains had the element of surprise, and had the upper hand. Their combined power dwarfed anybody that challenged them. People were decapitated, their flesh was charred beyond recognition . . . the nastiness of this new terror cell knew no bounds.
In a matter of minutes, only rubble remained of what once was a spectacular and beautiful resort of the Grand Kai. The first phase of their plan was now complete.
Meanwhile, Back on Earth
"Whoa!" Dende said as he jumped back, "Did you feel that Mr. Popo?" Looking over to the caretaker of the lookout, he saw that Mr. Popo's watering was way off. The water poured from the can and onto the greens-keeper's shoes, soaking them.
"I felt it Dende," he finally replied.
"Me too,"
"Piccolo!" Dende shouted in excitement, "What brings you here?"
"The same thing that worries you . . ." the namek warrior responded.
Gohan, Trunks, and Goten landed on the lookout only a few seconds after Piccolo, and all of them had worried looks on their faces.
"I got that funny feeling in my stomach again," Trunks said.
"Yeah, me too," Goten agreed as he rubbed his belly.
"It was like a huge explosion of power just exploded all around the world. I'm worried that somebody with that type of power would only do so for a reason.
"It was Tien," Gohan interrupted," I'd recognize his energy level anywhere." The Lookout got quiet once again as they searched for the exact point that Tien was fighting, but before they were able to, another explosion of energy stung their senses.
"Ow!" Goten cried out as his inexperienced skills were overloaded by the instant input, "That hurt my head,"
The others noticed it and where quick to ascertain the situation, "That power was no joke. Nobody on Earth has that type of power. It wasn't coming from Earth either . . . it was faint but I'm sure that last surge came from Otherworld!" Piccolo declared.
"This is NOT good. I felt around a dozen more of that type of energy levels and about a hundred suddenly disappear without a trace," Gohan said, his eyes closed in concentration. Dende and Mr. Popo looked amazed as the events unfolded before them. As guardian, Dende knew he was powerless to do anything about it, but with Piccolo and the others there, at least they would stand a chance.
"Ahh geez!" Gohan said with a worried tone, "A few more power levels just vanished!"
"We can't stay here much longer. Gohan, Trunks, Goten, come on . . . we're heading to Otherworld!" Piccolo commanded as he placed two fingers on his forehead, "Dende, I want to contact Krillin immediately and have him find Tien."
"Why don't you guys help him?" Dende asked his former friend and guardian.
"Because . . . there was another power level I felt for only a moment. It was so quick, it felt like a ghost . . . but it was enormous. If we can't contain these people in Otherworld, then the universe doesn't stand a chance."
Dende nodded, and the group of four disappeared. He wondered though . . . he wondered if the other person he spoke of was . . . No, that couldn't be true. If it was, then all life as he knew it would be erased.
Campsite
Yamcha had already packed up his belongings. He was ready to head home. It was only the second day of the trip, but he knew that in all likeliness it was over the moment Goku left. And he was looking forward to being able to hang with his old friends for the last four months too!
"Hey Krillin, I'm gonna head out. If they come back, tell them I went off to do some training," Yamcha told his buddy.
"Yeah bro, whatever," Krillin said, barely able to contain his laughter.
"What's so funny?"
"Well, if you want me to lie to them, don't you want to come with something a bit more believable?" Krillin couldn't help it, and keeled over in laughter, "Yamcha, training? HA HA HA! That's a riot!"
Yamcha was noticeably irritated, his teeth grinding inside his mouth, "Oh yeah? Well I'll let you know that I DO plan on training!"
"Righttttt . . . SURE you do," Krillin joked back with his friend. As Krillin teased Yamcha a little more, a white streak zoomed over head. It sounded like an airliner flying overhead, but the two fighters knew better than to think that.
"Did that look a little like Chaozu, or was it just me?" Yamcha asked.
"Nah, you were right, but what was he in a hurry for?" Krillin responded, "Looked like he was carrying something too."
"Let's go find out . . ." Yamcha said. He took the skies immediately along with Krillin and came up behind Chaozu. It only took a second for Chaozu to notice them and stop.
"Thank goodness I found you!" Chaozu exclaimed, "Tien's in trouble, and the- "
"Slow down Chaozu, tell us what's going on," Krillin calmly asked.
"Whoa! Is that Baba!" Yamcha blurted out as Chaozu turned around.
"Yeah, Tien and I saved her from the Ginyu Force, that's how this whole thing got started."
"Don't be such a joker, we are serious Chaozu, tell us what really happened," Krillin said.
"He's . . . telling the truth," Baba managed to squeak out in a weakened voice.
"Baba, you're okay!" Chaozu shouted.
"Yeah . . . BUT GET ME DOWN FROM HERE! I HATE HEIGHTS!" she screamed
"We're almost to Master Roshi's house, you'll be safe there," Chaozu replied, "I'll tell you guys the rest of the story along the way."
The trio flew as fast as they could and arrived at Kame House in record time. After a quick explanation and much persuasion, the Turtle Hermit allowed his sister to stay with him, TEMPORARILY. Chaozu had managed to maintain a psychic link with Tien the entire time, but was unable to get a hold of him. It was as though Tien had shut himself off from the world.
"I'm worried, you guys we have to go now!" Chaozu commanded.
"Right, I'm ready," Yamcha had gone inside and put on his vintage Gi back from the days of training with Master Roshi. It still fit well, and the red dye hadn't faded at all after all those years without wear. Krillin was finding it harder to leave than he had expected . . .
"No 18, I want you to stay here. I can handle it!"
"Krillin, don't give me that, I can more than handle myself," # 18 countered, "You could use my help from what your other friends have said."
"But,"
"No, it's final. I'm going with you whether you like it or not," the beautiful blond harshly replied, "Mr. Roshi, could you look after Marin while we're gone?"
"Yeah, you can count on me, heh," Master Roshi replied as he kept a watchful eye on his sister.
18 walked over to her daughter that had been left inside and lovingly rubbed her hand over little Marin's blond hair, "Mommy and daddy are going out for a while, so Grandpa Roshi is going to be your babysitter, okay?" Marin nodded slowly, looking a little sad that her parents were leaving her, "Don't be worried, Puar and Oolong will keep you company, okay?" Eighteen gazed over at Oolong with an evil eye to make sure he understood.
"Oh yeah! We'll have lots of fun together!" the short pig looking shape- shifter nervously replied.
"Yamcha, watch out for yourself, okay?" Puar called out to her lifetime companion as she waved with her paws.
"Yeah Puar, I'll stop by and hang out when we get back," the cute shape- shifting cat almost cried but continued to exchange waves of the hand as Chaozu took off. Yamcha jumped up into the air and powered up, soaring fast to catch up with their white-skinned psychic friend. Krillin and 18 said their goodbyes to Marin and kissed her quickly on the cheek before taking to the great blue sky themselves. The waves crashed all around the tiny island of the Turtle Hermit, and the palm trees swayed in the warm wind of the tropical ocean. It was quiet, the calm before the storm . . .
--------------- Power Levels
Ooarzu Nappa: 13,000,000
Chaozu: 180,000 Krillin: 325,000 Yamcha: 260,000 # 18: 20,000,000