Chapter 16; City under Seige
Chaos.
It's so...entertaining.
Stary briskly stroked her ponytail, adjusting the metal razors attached to the tips. She sat Indian-style on the roof of a residential apartment building. Before her were the teetering buildings that refused to succumb to the force of the placed explosives. Around her, the sky of West City filled with smoke and ash; people flooded the streets in a panic, all running about in a frantic rush to safety.
"Any sign of resistance as of yet?" Mori came up from behind Stary, currently as a Namekian; he had just returned from another section of the city, using the alien's senses to locate his subordinate.
Surprised, Stary hastily stood up and brushed herself off. "Sorry, sir. No, nothing yet. But I keep hearing the words 'Hercule' and 'champion' shouted amongst the screams. Apparently, someone's supposed to make an appearance." She idly flicked back her braid. "Do you really expect any big threat to be here? These people all seem like push-overs."
"If our sources are correct." Personally, he was getting a little impatient himself. And they better be.
"GOKU!! CHI-CHI!! PICCOLO!!"
The rest of the team was already outside when Gohan and the guardians landed on the ground. Bulma was talking rapidly with Naki and several other employees. The rest of the team was staring off at the burning West City. At the same, they seemed to be arguing with Goku, who would not let them leave. Chi-Chi looked close to tears.
Chris and the others ran up to Goku as soon as he landed. Immediately, he began to give his instructions. "Team, Mori's forces have launched an attack on West City; we must respond with resistance at once. The eight of us are to act at once. Piccolo and Andre, you two will work to extinguish the fires; you'll conjure a rainstorm from here. Goku, you will be with Danielle, and Chi-Chi, you're with Brian; your two groups will be responsible for the evacuation of citizens. Gohan and I will seek out the one leading the attack; one of Mori's four guardians would have to be here to direct this attack. If anyone needs backup, contact one of the guardians by telepa-"
"Hold up a second!" Yamcha cut in. "Goku, are you just gonna take orders from him? Why don't we just fly in ourselves?"
"Because you can't." Brian stepped up to Yamcha. "They wouldn't have staged the attack before the ki dampers were up. By now, you couldn't raise your power enough to hover. Go ahead; try."
Peeved, Yamcha focused on his energy. From behind him, the others did the same. It was almost funny; it simply appeared as though they all had a headache. But no power whatsoever. Shocked, the baseball player looked at his hands. "How…I can't…"
"That's right, you can't." Now Brian was going on forcefully as he flicked his tail; They don't trust us, they face the harsh truth. "So just stay out of the way, and let us deal with the problem."
Nodding, Chris flapped his wings, and lifted off. "Everyone, let's move!" With that, Gohan, Danielle, and Chi-Chi lifted into the air, Goku and Brian in tow. Piccolo and Andre shifted into meditation. Already, dark clouds began to pass overhead.
"Chris, wait!" The guardian stopped at the scientist's call. When Chris turned to Bulma, she didn't seem angry, just concerned. "We have underground shelters here. Bring the people from the city here for medical treatment."
Nodding, he smiled at her. "Yes ma'am." With a save of his hand, the six headed into the inferno.
Bulma turned to everyone else. "OK, everyone inside; I'll need your help to." Turning inside, she received no response from the others. "Hello?? Will you people come on?"
Fuming, the rest of the Z-fighters returned to the building, forced to sit out of this fight. But Vegeta stayed where he was, glaring after the guardians, and knowing he could not follow.
After breaking off into the three groups of two, the rain began to fall. The plan was simple; Goku and Brian would create large stone spears and arms, to burst from the ground and support crumbling buildings. At the same time, Danielle and Chi-Chi used their power to extract people from the buildings; then, created a wind tunnel through the streets, literally pushing people toward Capsule Corp.
Meanwhile, Gohan and Chris were having less luck. Chris was struggling in the air with water battering against his wings, Gohan pattering along at his heels. As an opposing element, Gohan would be vulnerable using his aura to fly in the rain, so he remained on the ground. They were looking through major open areas, the tops of buildings-any place noticeable.
"Chris! Are you sure this is the best way to look for Mori's generals," Gohan yelled.
"Mori likes to be flashy; don't worry," the guardian called to his student. Sure enough, he saw a figure in the distance; standing atop a fountain in the center of West City Park. "This way!" Signaling down a passing street, the two headed toward the park and the fountain.
Oh, they're cute, Stary thought as the two firey companions approached. Smiling, she flicked her ponytail aside.
"You there!" Chris called out, landing near the base of the fountain. "Who are you? State your name!"
Stary jumped from the fountain to the ground, and bowed. "I am Stary, alto of the Soul Quartet; I am the forth in line of Master Mori's top generals."
"In other words, you're the worst general." Gohan now arrived on the scene. He knew his words sounded big, but Gohan had to present himself as a strong-willed fighter; best to throw off the enemy as much as he could first. "A quartet, as you said your group is, is defined as a group of four. As such that would make you the forth of four; bottom of the barrel."
Which of the two (Christopher or Stary) were more shocked, Gohan didn't know. "Oh, you little whelp!" Enraged, Stary charged for the demi-saiyin, pulling a dagger from a holder on her thigh. Thrusting the dagger forward, she suddenly stopped as the blade was caught by two fingers. Then, the blade melted and dribbled down her hand, sizziling in the still pouring rain.
"I don't think so," Chris grinned, melting the blade. "Gohan is my student. If you have a problem, come talk to the teacher." Rearing his arm back, he charged a fireball at Stary, blasting her backward into the lip of the fountain.
"Gohan, fall back and prepare for battle." He did so, and the gem on Chris' head glowed. //Piccolo, Andre, hold off the water show. Everyone, we've located the leader of the attack; we're at West City Park. Get here as soon as you can, but make sure the citizens are still safe.//
Immediately, the rain let up, and Stary looked to the sky. "Of course; using rain to put out the fires. How many guardians have used that trick before?" She grinned. "Oh well, I guess guardians think alike; makes my job easier."
She lunged forward toward Gohan, who in turn raised his hands in attack. While conjuring a fireball, Stary suddenly snapped her head around, causing the metal tips to rake across Gohan's cheek, almost hitting his eye. He fell backward, hand on his face; the wound was deep, but wasn't life-threatening.
"You hellcat!" Pissed, Chris clapped his hands together. "Fire Crescent!" Arms wide, the same red sickles that were used against Vegeta earlier in the day were fired on Stary, who took them full blast. Searing against her chest, she clutched her body with her arms, and sent a death glare to her fiery adversary.
"Packs a punch, don't he?" Started, Stary turned to find the other six elementals spreading out around her; they had gathered together before meeting up with Chris and Gohan. Brian assumed a fighting stance. "If you thought the fire element alone was bad, see what all four have offer."
Eight on one. Stary sweatdropped.
"Do not worry, General Stary. I will assist you." The voice came out of nowhere, and shocked the group in its familiarity. They turned the fountain, which was now away from the circle the group had made, to find Vegeta, sitting calmly on the edge of the lake, a purple gem hanging from his neck.
"Vegeta?!? What are you doing here, its not safe!" Goku exclaimed. Next to him, however, Brian and the guardians were doing something unexected; shaking.
Brian curled his hand into a fist. No…no, this isn't right! He's not supposed to be on the planet! Just like all the others! "That's not Vegeta," the earth guardian cursed through gritted teeth. "That's Mori."
"BRING THE INJURED INTO DOCKING AREA 5! EVERYONE ELSE MUST BE TAKEN DOWN TO THE THIRD SUBLEVEL OF THE SHELTER, NOW!"
"At once, Ms. Briefs!" Two employees headed off to another stampeding arrival of scared citizens. The Capsule Corporation president decided to use the colossal docking bays and storage areas (normally used for labs for the company's larger projects) as shelters for survivors of the city. Even if they were attacked by…whatever, the occupied levels were now four stories underground, providing some protection.
Sighing, Bulma headed down a service staircase from the surface and across an underground shaft to the docking bays, which were level with the structure's first sub-level; all of CC's major buildings were connected underground. It was here that the wounded were being treated for burns, wounds from fallen debris, and injuries resulting from the first explosions. More damage had been done than previously thought.
Though she had a large, qualified medical staff, citizens with any medical knowledge were asked to help out in any way. Resources were also running low; her own lab coat was shredded and sleeveless, its pieces used as bandages. So, it wasn't surprising that as she stepped through the door into the hangar, it was filled with people running about, looking for any scrap of cloth or tube of antiseptic, anything to help.
"Bulma." The scientist turned to see Eighteen, the android helping a patient with a wounded leg. "This person looks like he has a fractured tibia. I need a hard stick about a foot long to make a splint."
"Well, the others are moving cargo in Docking Bay 3; you can ask one of them for one. Also, see if they found anything we can use." As she watched Eighteen leave, Bulma realized how much help the Z-fighters powers could be. They had been extremely helpful in clearing out room for the citizens. Eighteen, surprisingly, had a vast medical record in her memory, downloaded by Dr. Gero. She made great for resource improvisation.
Heading toward a side computer set up to activate the exterior cameras and see what was going on outside, she dropped what she had been holding; Chris' trench coat, and a small red flower, both he had given to her to hold on two while he and Vegeta sparred. When she bent down to pick them up, two small, yellow eyes poked out at her.
"AAHHH!" The scientist jumped backward in shock. Receiving a glare from those around her, she recomposed herself and looked back into the bundle, finding a small cat. "Oh, well hello there!" Picking up the cat, she heard a cry.
"Mata, come back here!" Bulma turned to see a red-headed girl come up to her. "I'm terribly sorry; my mommy was hurt, and while she was being helped, I lost my grip on her."
Smiling, the scientist bent down. "That's alright. Here you go." As the girl reached to take Mata, she froze, seeing something on the ground; the geranium.
"Excuse me ma'am, but did a boy with gold wings give you that?"
Bulma froze. "How did you-"
"It's Mr. Angel! I'm Cherry; Mr. Angel saved me before. Is he alright? He's not out there is he?"
Seeing the distress in the girl's eyes and hearing it in her voice, the blue haired woman could only smile warmly. Fire guardian has quite a heart, she thought. Stroking her hair, Bulma said, "You don't need to worry. Mr. Angel's just trying to help save people, just like he did you. He'll be back soon."
Picking up the flower, she lowered her head. "I hope so." Then, to herself, "Please be okay, Mr. Angel."
A/N: Okay, who wants to kill me, raise your hand! I know everyone must hate me for taking so long. I didn't want to upset so many people, things have just been hard. Not a good excuse, but things have been piling up.
I'm going to work next on an omake chapter before continuing the story.
Any feedback would be appreciated; ideas, criticism, flames, I just want people to see my work. Thanx, and sorry!