Joining

by Arinson Tidochi

Begins at the end of Ranma 12 and beginning of Dragon Ball Z. This story is now concluded. To find chapters 14 and 15 of the Episode Saga look for the seperate story Joining: Episode Saga.

11. Joining 11: The sleeping giant

Joining 11: The Sleeping Giant Written March 2003

By: Arinson Tidochi

I own neither Dragon Ball Z nor Ranma ½, and I don't have any money anyways, so please don't sue me. I'm not making any money out of this fanfiction, I'm just doing it for fun.

"Good idea, but we could also, hmm, good idea!" -Bee

"I hit my head today and now I can't remember some stuff, I think I have malaria, no wait what's it called?" -Bee, anime role playing

"In other words, the hypothesis is the more TV you watch the fatter your ass becomes." -Professor Mike Gearhardt

Reader responses: Legato_Steadhold: Thank you very much for your positive review, it really means a lot to me. I like to hear advice on the story but sometimes a simple pat on the back is just as good.

Flame Raven: That's an excellent guess but sometimes things aren't exactly what they seem. Pay close attention to everything that happens and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Psycho King: You're right about that, but in real world terms it takes the ability to accurately execute the strike in order to break several boards. If one just tries to force their way through it they'll probably hurt themselves. I know because my dad broke two of his fingers while breaking two boards with a punch because his fist wasn't quite right. In any case, we'll just have to see what happens. I don't want to give anything away.

Kinai: So you're a fan of that pairing in this story? I'm still toying with the idea, if you want that pairing then please tell me.

Vixen: It's pretty obvious why I saved your response for last. Before I dive in I want to thank you for another round of excellent questions. Please keep it up! This point will be revealed within this chapter Actually yes, but I'm not sure in what way yet. If you think that it should be romantic then let me know, but of course I reserve the final say for myself. I just want to see the reader's opinions. Yes, but his control of the cat fist isn't perfect yet. Eventually he may be able to use it at the same time as the other techniques. We'll just have to see what happens (I pretty much already know) Yes Mire did make a mistake, but he really didn't know much about Nabiki at that point. However between him and Captain Ginyu he is by far the most dangerous of Freezer and Babbiti's servants, you may just see what I mean this chapter. Freezer had his reasons for not just killing Raku. Remember that Maple was given permission to step in if his help was actually needed by the Supreme Kai. Freezer may just have suspected that something along those lines was the case.

Authors note

Actual story (No more interruptions)

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Three people were standing in an office that was well lighted by candles. One was a teenage boy with skin and hair that were lightly tinted with green and who only had small black pupils inside his eyes. Standing next to him was a full figured (think of the common anime female) girl with brown hair and cold calculating brown eyes. In the back of the room a figure could be seen wearing the classical villain black robes and who only had blue flames suspended where his eyes should have been.

"So it would seem that you have made your choice." The figure said in a scratchy voice. "You realize that it is now too late for you to turn back."

"Yeah we know it." Nabiki said with confidence that she wasn't feeling. She carefully examined what could be seen of his aura. "Completely black." She thought to himself. "So it means that his soul has been perverted somehow. Normally it wouldn't be possible for even the most evil of human kind to have a soul like that. Heck even Happosai's soul isn't that dark."

"Then that is the way it has to be." The mage concluded. With a snap of his fingers all of the candles and Piccolo's lamp turned off, dropping the room into complete darkness.

"Damn!" Piccolo yelled. In one motion he turned around grabbing Nabiki around the waist and dived out of the room. While leaving Nabiki felt a chill run along her stomach as if she had been touched by a magical power.

It was completely dark in the hallway. "Light." Nabiki said calmly after Piccolo had set her down. A small ball of light left her hand and floated above the ground, illuminating the hallway. "I felt something in there." Nabiki said to Piccolo. "Something was reaching for me."

"We have to keep our guard up." Piccolo said calmly while turning about slowly and looking around the hallway. "Mire's presence has completely disappeared. I have no idea what he's up to."

"Aura!" Nabiki yelled in panic as a black form flitted out of the darkness at her. It reached out and made a grab for her bag which wasn't being protected by her spell. "Ha!" Piccolo yelled as he launched an energy attack at the creature. It seemingly had the substance of a shadow as it bent itself at an impossible angle to avoid the attack.

"Shield!" Nabiki yelled as she held her hand forwards. It barely came up in time to stop the progress of the being as it bounced away only inches from her bag. Rising up his other hand Piccolo made another attempt at blasting the creature. This time the attack was successful and it fell to the ground in a pile of ashes.

"How did you do that?" Nabiki asked curiously while turning to Piccolo.

"How did I do what?" He asked gruffly while carefully turning and looking for more enemies.

"That ki attack. You threw it so easily. It was easier for you then it ever was for Ranma." Nabiki responded.

Piccolo laughed and shook his head. "You must not have met Ranma recently. The boy has become an incredible fighter, even by my standards. I'd say that he might even be almost a match for Goku."

"Almost a match?" Nabiki asked curiously. "That doesn't sound like the Ranma I know."

"You haven't met Goku." Piccolo said seriously. "No matter what happens he refuses to lose." He stopped moving and started to curse.

"What's the problem?" Nabiki asked. "Did you figure something out?"

"I'm getting frustrated." Piccolo admitted darkly. "He's just taking his time with us and wearing our nerves down. I say we leave before he tries something else."

"But what about the students here?" Nabiki asked. "As much as I'd like to we can't just leave them here to die."

"There was another mage in your house wasn't there?" Piccolo asked. "I could have sworn that I sensed two of you. Maybe you can contact the other one and have him help us."

"Right." Nabiki said. "You're going to have to cover me for a moment while I contact her." Piccolo only nodded in response.

Nabiki focused inside and pushed her mind outwards. She felt her spirit float upwards to the top of the school and then leave the building. She was flying over the rooftops of Nerima; the sun was beautifully set in the sky.

Her spirit stopped.

"What the hell?" She thought to herself. There was a low raspy chuckling from behind her. She turned to see the black robed figure floating in the air.

"It's you." She hissed. "What are you doing to me?"

"You're caught in my web little girl." He whispered. "I knew that sooner or later you would go to that other wizard to try to get help. And you did exactly that, perfect. While you're held up here Piccolo will have to protect your inert body at the same time as himself. I'm afraid that the task will prove to be beyond him."

"You apparently have no idea who you're dealing with." Nabiki said with disdain. "Magic that is related to the spirit and the mind is what I specialize in."

"Is that so." Mire said in a low voice. "Well then girl we'll just see if you're able to get away. Time is on my side, I really only need a few minutes before it's done."

**************************************

After waiting for close to 30 seconds Piccolo could tell something was wrong. "What's taking you so long Nabiki?" He asked while looking around. "The sooner you get that girl here the better off we'll be."

Three more shadows jumped out of the darkness aiming for Nabiki's bag. Piccolo picked her up and began to run at a rapid speed down the hallway. "Damn it Nabiki!" He yelled to the girl in his arms. "What the hell are you doing?!" The small light that she had conjured floated after her prone body.

Turning the corner he saw a figure that was shrouded in white robes blocking his path. "Out of my way!" Piccolo yelled as he leaped forward desperately with a flying kick. The figure deftly knocked Piccolo's kick off path and at the same time clawed deeply into his leg. Piccolo landed on his feet and winced at the pain as his leg almost buckled under him.

"Damn this weak human body." He thought to himself. He looked up at the figure and tried to get a look at his face. All he could see under the hood was darkness.

"Don't these guys have any imagination?" Piccolo asked himself. Almost faster then he could follow the robed fighter launched himself forward and began to claw at him with his hands. With Nabiki in his arms all Piccolo could manage was backtracking to avoid the attacks. Within a few moments he found himself driven back to the corner that he had come from. Out of the corner of his eyes he could see the shadows quickly approaching from his right.

"Only one option left!" Piccolo yelled. In a single leap he flew through the ceilings of the next few floors and came out above the school into the light of the day. The sun was now high in the sky and shined brilliantly down upon the grey stone rooftop of the school. Piccolo carefully landed on the roof and set Nabiki on the ground.

"I don't know what's going on." He said calmly while looking through her bag. "But it would be best if I took the dragon ball from you for now." He found the dragon ball and placed it in one of his pockets.

"I should change back to my true form before he comes here." Piccolo thought to himself. "Now how did that work? I think I remember that hot water broke the transformation." He created a kettle of hot water and dumped it on himself. With a tingly feeling his form expanded into his larger Namekian size. Piccolo focused for a moment and changed back to his old clothes.

"Much better." He said gruffly while moving his arms in circles. He paused and forced his leg to regenerate enough so that it was no longer bleeding. "Now I'm ready." He said confidently watching the hole he had made in the roof.

As if he had been waiting for those words the figure dressed completely in white leaped through the hole and landed agilely on the ceiling. Because of the light of the sun his features were now much clearer. He was quite tall, almost as tall as Piccolo's Namekian form and had green slightly withered hands with pointed nails at the end of them. It looked like some symbol once been on his robe but had faded out because of the passage of time. Nothing could be discerned about his face because of the darkness cast by the hood. "Are you ready?" The figure asked in a low voice. "I guess we will see whether or not you are soon enough."

"Yeah we'll see." Piccolo said. He went back into his fighting stance. "I can't let him hurt her." He thought to himself while eyeing Nabiki out of the corner of his eye. The man before him noticed and started to chuckle. "Concern for a human? That's not what I'd expect from the successor of Piccolo the demon king."

"How did you know that?" Piccolo asked coldly.

The figure shrugged. "You will find out soon enough. If you can actually draw blood then I'll tell you who I am."

"It's a deal." Piccolo said seriously. The two opponents began to circle around each other slowly, trying to size up their adversary.

"His stance seems familiar." Piccolo thought to himself while eyeing the white robed figure. "Something's bugging me about this guy that I can't put my finger on. If I can only draw his blood then this mystery will be solved." Deciding that the time was right both Piccolo and the other being threw themselves forwards to attack.

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Two men were standing in a broken rocky landscape facing an hourglass that was only beginning its transition. One was a large purple man with a black scar on his stomach and who was pulsing with a black energy. The other was a handsome young man with black hair and a pigtail who appeared to already be tired from previous conflict. Never-the-less a small confident smile was alight on his face as he watched the hourglass.

"Captain Ginyu has amazingly little control over his energy." Raku thought to himself. "I guess that happens when your power level is vastly expanded with completely demonic energy. He's practically bursting at the seams; it shouldn't take much to turn his own energy against him." Raku pondered for a moment. "Now I just need some energy of my own to expand the spiral."

Raku focused and aligned his mind with that of the world around him. "Please, I beg you." His words came quietly. "Lend me your power to destroy this evil."

Nature heard his call. For those who knew what to look for wisps of energy began to lift out of everything and come to the one who would ask. Every blade of grass lent its energy, every fish of the sea and bird of the air. All living things gave a piece of themselves to aid the cause of removing the blight of demonic power that threatened their very existence.

A ball of pure spiritual began to collect in front of Raku. Opening his eyes he could see the energy fluctuating even as it expanded in size. "It's very presence is being resisted." Raku realized. "Freezer's demonic power is trying to drive it away because of what it is."

He looked over at where Captain Ginyu was standing facing the hourglass. His face was completely confident and he appeared to be humming a tune to himself. Closer inspection showed that his eyes were slowly turning red and were beginning to twitch. His body was pulsing with his energy and the black energy was fluctuating in waves around him.

Two minutes before the top of the hourglass was completely empty the spirit bomb was roughly twice Raku's height in diameter. "That's all of the energy the earth can manage." Raku thought to himself. "No where close to being enough to handling Ginyu in a straight attack, but it won't have to. For what I need it should be more then enough."

He looked at Captain Ginyu again. "It's time to begin." He thought with a smile. "Hey Captain Ginyu!" He yelled to the other man. "I'm going to create some decoration for when we fight! It would be a shame for such a dramatic showdown to take place in this mess."

"Quite true." Captain Ginyu said with a smile. "Do whatever you feel is necessary."

With his mind Raku forced layer upon layer of circles to spring up from the stone ground with Captain Ginyu as the center so that the radius of the last circle was half a mile. The stone circles started out as an inch above the ground at where Captain Ginyu was standing and became higher until they were a foot high at where Raku was standing.

"I don't think that Ranma could handle doing something like this so quickly." Raku thought to himself. "But with Goku and Ranma's Joined minds something like this is easy."

Captain Ginyu's energy was already falling into the pattern that the spiral stones had set up for him as it even began to rotate about him. Raku could feel the air pressure dropping even as the energy began its movement. The spiritual energy in front of him also began to fluctuate.

"Maybe twenty seconds left." He thought to himself. "I have to do this right, there aren't going to be any other chances." With his mind he began to unravel the spiritual energy until just a few seconds later it resembled a large spring that was hovering just in front of him.

The black energy surrounding Captain Ginyu flared in his anticipation of the attack. Raku looked up again at the hourglass as soon as he was finished with the spirit bomb.

The top was empty.

"It's time to die!" Captain Ginyu yelled as he turned to where Raku was standing. Pushing forwards both of his hands he unleashed a huge blast of black energy at the half-saiyajin. "Taste the power of the almighty Lord Freezer!"

Unbeknownst to the apprentice mage the black energy began to spread out to resemble a spiral even as it left his hands. At Raku's command the huge amount of energy gathered from the people of the earth took a shape resembling that of a spring and positioned itself between him and his enemy. It stretched itself out to its full length to meet the incoming attack.

"What are you doing?" Captain Ginyu yelled out with a laugh. "Do you actually expect that small bit of energy to stop me?"

Raku smiled slightly as Ginyu's energy met his own. Quickly the demonic attack began to push back that of Raku's. After only a few feet however Ginyu's attack began to slow down and stopped completely at the point that the spring of spiritual energy was completely compressed.

"Impossible." Captain Ginyu whispered in shock. "How did you do that?"

"It's simple." Raku said confidently. "I eliminated all of the momentum of your attack by transferring it to a spiral motion with these circles and through use of a spring." He smiled cockily. "But there's one part of the spring that you've forgotten about."

Before Captain Ginyu could ask the question was answered for him. The spring of yellow energy snapped back to its original position throwing the demonic power back at him.

Captain Ginyu tried to move out of the way but found himself constricted by his own energy. "What the?!" He yelled in panic looking around. He could see the black energy raging about him unchecked in the circular patterns that Raku had created. The incoming energy spread apart at the front, as if it were hungry to eat the one who would dare try to control it.

"Which is probably the case." Raku realized watching the exchange confidently. "From what I saw of Rate's energy I think it would be a mistake for any mortal to try to wield it. It wouldn't be long until they were gripped by the same insanity the demons have. Captain Ginyu must have been either desperate or a complete fool to try something like that."

"Nooo!!!!!" Captain Ginyu yelled as the energy hit him head on and enveloped him. His face twisted at some horrible unknown pain and he collapsed to his knees.

"I actually feel kind of bad for him." Raku thought as pity arose at the sight of the man. "Even with all of the things he's done he doesn't really deserve to have his soul devoured by that energy." His expression hardened. "But he brought it upon himself. When he asked a demon lord for help he knew what the risk was."

The energy moved in upon Ginyu until his form completely disappeared in its midst. A horrible scream was all that could be heard from the endless darkness.

Kami breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the scene that had passed. "Incredible." He said aloud. "Raku was actually able to do it."

"Do what Kami?" Mr. Popo asked curiously from behind him.

"He recognized the only weakness in Captain Ginyu's armor." Kami said. "He saw that great instability was the cost of great power when a mortal attempted to use powers that were vastly beyond him and turned it to his advantage. It was in this way that he was able to defeat Captain Ginyu."

"You mean he won?!" Mr. Popo said excitedly. "This entire conflict is over?"

Kami's face became thoughtful and he again began to watch the scene taking place on the earth below. "It's too early to say." He said simply. "Certainly he was overwhelmed by his own power but that doesn't mean that he's completely out of the fight. I can only hope that if he's alive he'll be sufficiently weakened by that attack for Raku to be able to defeat him."

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Akane was sitting in a small but comfortable tent with a look of deep concentration on her face. "I have to make this work." She thought to herself. "If what I heard is true then Ranma. I mean Raku will be in deep trouble." She finished that last thought with a hint of sadness in her brown eyes. Shaking that thought off she again began to concentrate.

"I know that the door has to be in her somewhere." She thought. "Somehow Maple was able to lock it away to protect me from myself but I need to open it again. I need that power." She tried for a few more moments and then gave up in frustration. "Why couldn't I have just unleashed half of my power and then tried to control it?" She asked herself. She sighed, "Well I guess that I really didn't have time to think about it. I bet that if Ranma had been in my position he would have figured it out. Ranma always was excellent at figuring things out under pressure, not at all like me."

She sadly brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "Awaken the sleeping giant." She whispered to herself. "What could that voice possibly have meant by that? And who was that anyways, was that Maple with more of his cryptic riddles? I'm just so confused right now I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do." A few tears began to roll down her face. Glancing over at the entrance to the tent Akane noticed a ceramic bowl filled with a still steaming brownish tea. "I'm glad that Phianta is so comforting." Akane said. "Maybe this tea of hers will help me think of something."

She gingerly stood up and tested hers muscles. Finding everything in working order she walked over to the tea and carefully picked it up without spilling a drop and then returned to her original seat.

She brought the bowl to her lips and sipped it lightly. "This is pretty good." She thought to herself in surprise as the pleasantly sweet tea that tasted of cinnamon sank into hers stomach with a gentle sensation. "Maybe if I ask Phianta she'll let me take some of this back home."

Akane spent a few minutes in quiet thought gently drinking the Amazon tea. Gradually she could feel a calm come over her that hadn't been there before and she could feel her mind lighten as if it had lost some kind of weight. "This stuff is really amazing." She thought as she set the empty bowl besides her bed. Her eyes became serious and her face again tensed with concentration. "It's time to try to find it again." She thought to herself. Finding her center Akane carefully attempted to bring up the mental image of a door. After several more minutes of struggling she could make out an outline.

"Almost have it." She whispered desperately trying to force the door into plainer view. She felt something inside her mind wrest the door way and again in disappeared.

Akane sighed in disappointment and leaned back onto her hands. "I don't think that I'm going to be able to get at it." She realized. "Whatever Maple did to close off my magic he did an excellent job. There has to be another way to get the energy to help Raku." She pondered for a moment before her eyes widened in realization. "That's it." She said excitedly, leaping to her feet. "When I was healing Goku on that snake-like road I accidentally gave him some of my energy as well. Maybe I can convert my ki into magic!"

She became downcast again. "But how?" She asked herself. "How could I do that?" She shook her head. "It doesn't matter; I have to find a way."

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A young man of close to 15 years of age in appearance was calmly standing in a rocky and broken landscape. Near to him were two figures that were lying on the ground. Though they were still semi conscious they appeared to be frozen in time and appeared to be staring at where he was standing in shock.

"Not much longer." Maple said to himself. "Right now I would guess that I'm maybe twenty minutes ahead of the present and it's getting closer all the time." He began to spin in circles surveying the landscape. "It's really been a lot of work helping this world out." He said. "Impending destruction first due to a demon attacking the minds of the earth's strongest defenders and then the greatest of the demon lords getting involved is kind of hard to deal with you know?"

He paused for a moment as a look of slight pain came over his face. "She's trying it again." He realized. "Akane is trying to get her power back by wresting it away from me. I wonder if she realizes just how close we are." He chuckled. "I doubt it. Even though I'm more closely related to her then any member of her immediate family we don't share any blood at all. The kind of relation that we have is almost impossible for humans to spot." His face became thoughtful. "I just hope that she doesn't freak out when she discovers the truth about where the magical powers of her family came from."

"What's happening?" He asked confusedly as a pulse of light began to come from his chest. Pulling his robe out in front of him he saw a small object on a silver chain around his neck glowing brightly. He gingerly pulled it out from under his robes and continued to examine it.

"You just had to get involved didn't you?" He asked with a slight frown. "So what exactly are you up to?" The object which was now revealed to be a small icicle shaped crystal with a jagged part missing pulsed innocently. "You can't tell me that you're not up to something." Maple said sternly. "Whenever you pulse like that I know that you're talking to someone. Whenever you have a hand in whatever's going on things tend to get more complicated."

It pulsed at him expressing a feeling of annoyance to which Maple rolled his eyes. "Yeah I know. I'm one to talk about getting involved and making things more complicated. But at least I usually tell those that I talk to a good piece of what I know unlike someone who likes to speak in riddles."

The shard shined rapidly for a moment as if it was laughing and Maple started to laugh along with it. "Look, just don't get anyone into trouble okay?" He said with a smile before tucking it again under his robe. He shook his head slightly. "Why on earth it would even care about what's going on is beyond me." He said with a shrug.

He turned back to his surroundings and again began to examine them. "Eighteen minutes." He said confidently. "In eighteen minutes I'll be part of the central timeline again, I can hardly wait."

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Nabiki gingerly tested the limits of the soul-binding spell that was holding her spirit in place. "Pretty damn strong." She admitted to herself. "He was really ready for me."

Mire floated confidently in the air in front of her. "Well, aren't you going to try something?" He asked in his scratchy voice. "Or are you just going to be stuck all day while the dragon ball is wrested away from Piccolo?"

Nabiki ignored him as she continued to examine the spell that was binding her. "There has to be a weakness in this spell." She thought to herself. Looking up she saw a thin line extending out from something that the mage was holding in his left hand. Pretending not to notice it Nabiki returned to examining the spell surrounding her. "I should be able to cut this spell away at the source." She realized. "The trick will be in not letting him know what I'm up to." With her mind she carefully began to attack the spell as it was leaving his hand.

"As long as we're going to be here for a while why don't you tell me a little bit about yourself girl." He said calmly. "I'm curious to know why you're called the ice queen of Furinkan High."

"Might as well humor him, maybe it will take his attention off of what I'm doing." Nabiki thought to herself. Careful to keep her eyes off of where she was releasing herself she began to speak. "It's a reputation that I've actually worked hard to earn." She said calmly. "I've done everything that I could to pass myself off as a person with a cold heart so that I could make more money."

"Was the sacrifice worth it?" Mire asked calmly. "You certainly don't have many friends. Was it really worth giving up the possibility of having friends for the sake of money?"

Nabiki's jaw clenched. "That was a sacrifice that I was willing to make." She said with a hint of annoyance in her voice. "It was worth it for the funds I brought in. I made ten times as much as the average person my age."

"I see I touched a sore spot." Mire said with a certain dark pleasure in his voice. "So you are a girl who was willing to give up friends for money. So why then didn't you accept my offer to buy the dragon ball? You would have been rich beyond your wildest dreams if only you had accepted."

Nabiki raised her spiritual head airily. "To tell you the truth I only denied your offer because I thought that I could get more out of it somewhere else. I wanted to discover why you desired it so badly."

Mire started to laugh, it was a horrible sound. Almost as if someone was dieing. "A true business person, very impressive. So you have a cold heart and know what you want, now that's something I can respect." The blue flames that he had for eyes flared more intensely. "So why don't you join me Ice Queen? I could give you an entire world of your own. You could destroy all of the life and recreate it in your own image. I would even be willing to give you this one if you wanted it. You would have all the riches that you could possibly desire."

Nabiki found herself staring into his eyes. "He really could do that?" She thought to herself in awe. "An entire world of my own, what wouldn't I give for that?" She shook her head. "I have to concentrate." She said to herself sternly. "He's trying to influence my mind; I of all people should recognize what he's up too." She forced herself to stare into the chilling flames of his eyes while she continued to work on breaking his hold. "That won't work on me." She said with calmness that she wasn't feeling. "I won't let you trick me."

He started to laugh. "But I already have my dear." He said with his voice dripping with smugness. "While you were ever so desperately sawing away at my spell that was binding you I was preparing a different one of even greater power." He held up both of his hands and gently pulled off his right glove to reveal a hand made completely of bone underneath that glistened white in the sunlight. On the palm of the hand a ball of black energy had already formed.

"No time to waste!" Nabiki realized. With a final attack from her mind the spell that was binding her was broken. "Kasumi!" Her mind yelled out telepathically before she was enveloped by the black energy. She felt her consciousness slip away as she was overtaken by the magic.

"She's a very sharp girl." Mire said with a smile while admiring her soul that was now within the small ball. "It's been a pleasure doing business with you Ice Queen." He said while slipping the black glove back over his hand of bone.

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Kasumi looked up suddenly and dropped a plate that she had been holding, causing it to shatter against the ground. "That was Nabiki's voice." She said in shock. "She sounded like she was in pain."

She noticed the plate that was lying on the ground. "Come together." She told it calmly. At her words the plate pieced itself back together and flew up into her waiting hands. She set it gently on the counter and then walked to the front door of the house and stepped into the beautiful daylight.

"Now where is she?" Kasumi asked herself quietly. She carefully brought her hands together in front of her chest and sent her awareness outwards. "She's not anywhere in Tokyo." Kasumi said in shock. "She must be in danger." Her face became thoughtful. "She left for school only a few hours ago. I guess that would be the best place to start looking."

"I'm going out for a while father." She called into the house. "Alright Kasumi." She heard his voice respond. Moving much quicker then her usual relaxed pace Kasumi stepped onto the sidewalk and began to walk towards Furinkan High.

The robed man leaned back as if to kick Piccolo even as he was closing in. Piccolo moved to the side of the where the kick was aimed and leaped at him with his claws. The figure halted the momentum of the kick and ducked under Piccolo's attack and clawed him in the side. "It was a feint!" Piccolo realized. "Ha!" He yelled as he shot a blast of energy at point blank range causing the man in white to desperately bring up both of his arms to block.

Piccolo leaped away from where the cloud of dust was floating off of the surface of the school. It wasn't long before a form materialized itself in the dust. Piccolo barely had time to raise his guard before the aggressor was on him clawing viciously. Piccolo held out both of his arms and while they were being clawed he grabbed the arms of the attacker. "Get away now." He said gloatingly even though the claws of the man he was holding were digging into his arms. Piccolo opened his mouth and a great deal of energy poured out targeted directly at the face of the man he was holding.

In desperation to get away the man jerked one of his arms away from Piccolo's grip so hard that his forearm was ripped off from Piccolo's force. The blood dripped down from his arm as light green in the sunlight.

Piccolo looked down at the arm and gasped in shock. It was completely green except for past the arm parts of the skin were actually pink. "This is a Nemekian arm." He said slowly. "It looks like Kami's."

"Almost right." The man said calmly while releasing his other arm from Piccolo's grip. He paused and began to focus. Yelling he forced another arm to shoot out where his had been missing. He chuckled and backed a few steps away from Piccolo. "Well I guess that I'm honor bound to tell you who I am now." He said calmly. He reached up to his hood and pulled it back to reveal a Namekian face similar to Kami's. The difference was that his face was narrow and insidious looking and his eyes were tinted with yellow. A cruel smile filled his green face.

"Impossible." Piccolo whispered while staring at him. "How could you be here? You're dead, Goku killed you."

"I'm pleased that you remember me my child." He said. "So you remember your father Piccolo the demon king, I'm pleased of that. As to how it is I'm here." He cocked his head to one side creating an odd predator type of look. "Even though I gave up most of my spirit to you after I was killed some of it remained separate and began to float about this world. When the mage Mire came across me he gave me a new body and a new life so that I could take revenge."

His face became angry and he began to walk towards Piccolo again steadily. "I had been hoping that you would take revenge for me but I can see that it didn't happen. Somehow your heart became soft because of the child of our worst enemy and you forgot about your purpose."

Piccolo felt conflicting emotions boiling inside. "It's true that Gohan has changed something about me." He admitted to himself silently. "But that doesn't mean that I've given up on revenge does it? When all of this is over and the world is no longer threatened I'll be free to take it for myself."

"So you just thought that you'd put it off for a little while." The demon king said with a sneer. "You know very well that you never intended any such thing. And what of this girl?" He motioned angrily to where Nabiki was lying on the ground. "Don't tell me that you're getting feelings for her too?!"

"No, you're mistaken." Piccolo said with a growl. "I only care about protecting the dragon ball."

"Your actions speak otherwise." Pressed his old self. "I noticed the way you carefully noted her position before we started fighting. It was as if you were careful to make sure that she'd be out of harms way. So tell me what you feel for her? Do you actually love her in the same way that you loved that child or are you allowing your human lust to influence your judgment?"

"Nonsense!" Piccolo yelled. "You know as well as I that Namekians don't have a gender. How could I possibly feel anything of the sort for her?"

"But you are a human now." The demon king said now much more quietly. "You sealed your fate as soon as you splashed yourself with the water of Jusenkyo that I had collected from there countless years ago. Whenever you splash yourself with cold water you will return to your human male form. It's permanent."

"It's. permanent?" Piccolo asked in shock. "Damn, I shouldn't have been so reckless!" He yelled to himself. "I shouldn't have just tossed the water on myself because it was convenient at the time."

"But it's not such a bad thing." Piccolo Daimao said. "I can't count the number of people that have come before me in hell because of their weak human lusts. Maybe if you knew what it was like by experiencing it with that girl you would be more able to judge."

"Shut the hell up!" Piccolo yelled. "I have no desire for anything like that!"

"And with your beautiful human body." Piccolo Daimao continued. "It would be an easy thing for you to seduce many more women to their damnations. Imagine the power that you now possess."

Piccolo's entire body was clenched and an aura of furious energy sprang up around him. His fists were so tight that green blood dripped down from them onto the ground. "Why don't you just return to hell where you belong?!" He yelled.

In one motion he leaped at the older form of himself and prepared to strike a killing blow. "Have you forgotten that our souls are linked?" Piccolo Daimao asked calmly. Piccolo froze in mid-air. "What are you talking about?" He asked confusedly. "My soul and Kami's are linked."

"And now mine as well." He said with an evil smile. "And now we are a trinity. A set of three beings all joined in the middle. If one of us dies then we all die."

"Is he telling the truth?" Piccolo asked himself while staring into the yellow eyes of his predecessor. "Can I take that risk? If he's telling the truth then Kami and I would die if I killed him and then the dragon balls would be gone. But if he's wrong the he can do nothing to me since Mire has yet to make his wish. For the moment at least I'd be safe."

With concern in his eyes he looked over at where the Nabiki was lying. "Where the hell is she?" He asked himself.

"Worried about your woman?" Piccolo Daimao asked. "I believe that by now Mire has already trapped her soul and will be arriving shortly."

"What?!" Piccolo asked, turning to him. "He was waiting for her?"

"That's right." He said calmly. "He knew in advance that she would go to the other user of magic for help and prepared a trap for her. Soon he will be arriving with her soul in tow to use as leverage against you."

Piccolo looked at him with anger written all over his face. "So how do you play into this?" He asked. "Why the hell did Mire bring you back to life and what do you want from me?"

"His reason for returning me to life was so that I could prevent you from interfering with his plans." Piccolo Daimao said calmly. "And as for what I want with you it's actually quite simple. I intend to absorb you into myself and then to do what you could not. I will destroy Goku and seal Kami away and take this world for myself."

"Absorb me?" Piccolo asked hesitantly. His eyes narrowed and became determined. "Never." He said in a low voice. "I would never allow that to happen. I am now the true demon king. I will defeat you and then take your power for my own so that I can protect the earth."

"Don't you see what you've become?" His counterpart said in disgust while shaking his head. "Very well then my child. The winner of this match will take the power of the loser."

A lone form was standing on a rocky outcropping watching a writhing mass of black energy. His face looked as if it was set in stone because of determination. His orange Chinese shirt and dark pants made dramatic waves across his body as the wind whipped through them. His black hair with its soft spikes and his pigtail gently rocked back and forth as they were caressed by the breeze. His blue eyes were soft with pity but his pupils shimmered in stoic desire to accomplish that which had to be done.

"It's too late for you Ginyu." Raku said solemnly. "I could have warned you about asking a demon lord for help but you probably would have been too much of a fool to listen anyways. Even though you've done horrible things I don't want to kill you but you've given me no choice. It's time to end this."

He brought his arms to the side of his body. "A single Kamehameha will be all it takes to defeat him while he's in this condition." Raku said calmly. "Kamehameha!" He brought both of his hands to the front of his body and released a blast of blue energy directly at the writhing form.

It hit dead on throwing a great deal of dust into the air and completely obscuring the place where Captain Ginyu had been. "Right on." Raku said confidently. "Ginyu's power has completely disappeared and the dark energy is dispersing. My work here is done."

He turned around and flew up into the air slowly, weighed down heavily by the battle that he had experienced. "It was a hard fight." He thought warily. "Both Goku and Ranma had sacrificed so much to allow me to exist. I still remember Ranma's regret over not telling Akane, it feels like it's burning in my mind. Now his regret is mine, and Goku and Ranma's losses are my losses. Now there's nothing for me to do but train and to become the perfect warrior that neither of them were capable of being on their own."

His eyes began to shimmer slightly. "There will be no one who's my equal." He said, remembering Freezer's words. "No one on this world will be able to challenge me. From here on in it will be a lonely road. But I saw a great potential within Gohan, maybe someday he will be my equal. I can only hope."

There was a loud blast behind him followed by a maniacal laughter. "Can't be!" Raku yelled turning around in shock. What he saw was Captain Ginyu standing straight up holding his arms at his sides with his head thrown back laughing. "His energy," Raku whispered, "He's not the same man that he was before."

The possessed body turned its head to look Raku directly in the eyes. Though he felt no fear Raku couldn't help but shudder at what he saw in those eyes. They were red and burned with the desire to destroy; they burned with the power of insanity. There was no sign of Captain Ginyu anywhere in those hate filled orbs.

"Now this is my true form." The being said before bursting out laughing again as if he had made some private joke. "I've taken the body of that fool for my own use and will now use it to destroy you."

"Who are you?" Raku asked still in disbelief while lowering himself slowly to the ground. "Are you Freezer?"

"No but that's a good guess." The creature said calmly. "I'm just someone who's out to finish what's been started. Freezer knew that Captain Ginyu would screw up and placed an inherent condition unrecognizable by Ginyu that when he did fail the energy would take his body for the sake of a single purpose."

"And what is that purpose?" Raku asked calmly. "To destroy me?"

The energy beast licked his lips. "That's part of it." He said with a deep smile. "I am to kill you after causing you as much torment as possible. So maybe once I horribly maim you I'll hunt down someone you care about and kill them before your eyes before finishing you off. Why don't you throw me a few ideas? I am only a few seconds old after all."

"So what's in it for you?" Raku asked. "Once you finish your work here are you just going to puff into thin air and disappear? That's doesn't sound like a very good deal."

Alternate Ginyu shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me; all I care about is my purpose." He shifted all of his weight onto his front leg and held up his arms to his sides in the now recognizable demonic fighting stance. "So are you ready little mortal?"

Raku examined his stance and his eyes carefully. "He's completely nuts just like Rate was but there are no obvious weaknesses." Raku noted. "Unlike Ginyu he has complete control over the energy so I can't count on using it against him like before. In terms of power he's still roughly sixty or seventy times greater then me so there's no way I can compete with him in face to face conflict. His stance shows that he doesn't care whether or not he sustains injuries so maybe I could impale him as he approaches with the Yamasen-ken. I only hope that I get enough time."

He didn't. Before Raku could even finish the thought he felt a burning pain in his gut as the demonic creature drove its hand into him. "I didn't even notice that he was moving before he was already here." Raku thought to himself in shock. "No time for screwing around."

"Rrraaagghhhh!" Raku yelled as he forced the air surrounding the demon to be ripped away from his position. The Ginyu beast found itself completely surrounded by a vacuum globe as Raku held back the air with his mind.

"What do you think of that?" Raku asked in a low voice while he spat out a bit of blood. "Do you have a way to get out of that one?"

The nameless monster paused curiously and began to turn in circles while carefully examining the barrier. He held up both of his hands to the edge and began to trace the side of the dome. "Impressive." He said calmly. "But surely that's not everything?"

"No." Raku agreed. "I recycled what was left of the energy from the spirit bomb just in case something like this happened." Creating a slight gap in the barrier he threw what was left of the pure spiritual energy directly inside where it exploded outwards towards the edges of the dome completely enveloping the lone figure within. But instead of a scream of pain he heard a laugh of pleasure.

"What is he doing?" Raku asked in confusion while staring the energy which was exploding over and over again resembling a small star. A small bit of black energy could be made out near the outside of the explosion and an instant later all of the energy turned complete dark.

"That energy is such an easy thing to convert to what I can use." The evil being inside said confidently. "People are naturally evil after all so it's simple to corrupt their spiritual power."

"Air crush!" Raku said while releasing his hold. With a sucking sound followed by a large crash all of the air rushed into Ginyu's position with rock crushing force. The black energy was driven into his body and the already tattered armor that he was wearing was further disintegrated so that flowers had to be edited in to cover certain parts of his body.

"No use." He said calmly while standing perfectly still. "I suppose that I shouldn't waste anymore time and just get along with the thrashing already." Before Raku had time to react he felt something hit him in the back of the head while at the same time something else hit him on the same spot in the stomach. Raku coughed blood as he collapsed to his knees.

"I'm out of ideas." He realized. "I don't think that there's anything else I can do but die with honor." He defiantly raised his head to look into the red eyes that were burning with desire for the incoming goal.

"So are you ready to die little mortal?" Ginyu asked with a smile.

**************************************

"I have to figure out how to make this work!" Akane practically yelled while pulling at her hair in frustration. "I know it's possible but how did I do it before?" She paused and went deep into thought.

"If I remember correctly then I wasn't actually thinking about it as it was happening." She said now calm. "I was trying to heal him and my magical energy was running low so without realizing it I started to call upon my ki energy. So maybe the secret is not to think about it."

She felt the desire for expedience build up inside her. "Raku is in trouble." She realized. "I have to go to help him now." She found her center and focused her energy there. Forming the image that had been given to her before by the unknown force she attempted to force herself to go to that place.

Nothing happened.

"This has to work!" Akane yelled to herself with tears already flowing from her face. "I have to make this work!" Focusing again she poured as much energy as she could muster into her effort.

An instant later her body disappeared into thin air.

**************************************

Maple looked up slightly as he felt something inside him shift. "Akane's power just took a major dip." He commented in alarm. "Was she attempting to use magic while her powers were sealed away? She doesn't have enough ki energy for anything more then just the basic spells; she could kill herself if she's not careful." He looked down the front of his robe in annoyance. "You don't have anything to do with this do you?" He asked sternly. The crystal hanging from his chest blinked innocently a few times before becoming completely dark. Maple sighed and looked up while shrugging. "Well, what can you do?" He asked the air. "There's nothing for me but waiting right now." He glanced at something that was around his wrist. "Ten more minutes." He said calmly.

**************************************

Piccolo launched himself towards his evil predecessor with both of his claws held in front of his body.

"Somewhat direct don't you think?" Piccolo Daimao asked with a smile that twisted his face. In a deft move he dodged to the side and threw a blast of energy at Piccolo as he went past him. Piccolo spun about quickly and knocked the attack to the side where it made contact with the school and blew a hole in the roof and in the same motion returned his own blast of energy.

This time Piccolo Daimao made no motion to dodge and allowed the attack to hit him head on. "What is he doing?" Piccolo asked in shock upon seeing the look of triumph on his face immediately before contact. It didn't take long for him to figure it out as he felt a blast of searing pain on his torso that crumpled him to his knees. Looking up he saw Piccolo Daimao standing gloatingly over him.

"How did you do that?" Piccolo croaked out. "Well actually it's quite simple." The demon king responded. "Our souls are connected to each other's and to Kami's as well. Therefore it's a simple thing for magic to cause an attack that would have hit me to hit you instead." With a smile on his face he raised one of his fists and punched himself across the face.

With a shout of pain Piccolo's head snapped to the side as the blow made contact. Raising his hand to his face he could feel a deep bruise already forming there. Looking back up at the demon king he could see that thus far he was completely uninjured.

"I don't suppose that it goes two ways." Piccolo said with a grim smile.

Piccolo Daimao shrugged and started to laugh. "No it doesn't." He said. "I have the privilege of being the original Piccolo and therefore you can't transfer damage to me in the same way." His yellow eyes filled with desire as he looked down at his new self below him. "So why not give me your power?" He whispered. "With your strength I would be able to accomplish everything that you have ever desired! It would be such a wonderful thing for you to experience. I could rule this world if only you would give me your help!"

"I have to buy time to heal myself." Piccolo thought to himself. "All I need from him are a few seconds." His eyes met those of his former self. "I refuse." He said flatly. "We are so alike that if I fused with you my consciousness would disappear and then I wouldn't be able to enjoy our victories." He frowned noticeably. "Besides, I am no longer certain that I wish to rule this world. I've discovered that it holds properties that before I had never known of. Before I take anymore actions I wish to discover what the meanings of these things are."

Piccolo Daimao scowled at him. "So you really have fallen in love, how disgusting. You of all people should know that what is called love is just another form of weakness. I will take your body and then purge all of this nonsense from you so that you can be free just like in the past."

"Not likely." Piccolo grunted as he completed the regeneration of his torso and face. He conjured a bucket of water in his left hand and dumped it on himself, triggering his human transformation. A moment later his clothing fell loosely around him and he shrunk it to fit his smaller human form.

"What is that?" The evil Namekian asked curiously. "Do you think that your human form can accomplish what your demon form cannot?"

"It should be more then enough." Piccolo said gruffly. He paused as he gathered yellow energy in his finger which he was holding to his forehead. "Special Beam Canon!" He yelled as a spiral of yellow energy left his finger heading towards his older self.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?" Piccolo Daimao asked almost in amazement as the attack approached him. "Attack return." He said under his breath as he activated the magic to return the attack and then confidently waited for it to strike him.

This time it actually did strike him as it created a huge hole in his stomach and went out the other side. "How?" He gasped as he fell to his knees.

"You got overconfident." Piccolo said with a smile. "In this body we don't share the same connection that we did before so that simple spell won't work. However if I kill you Kami will suffer the same result and the dragon balls will disappear. So that means that there's only one way to make sure that you disappear for good." He conjured a teakettle filled with steaming water and dumped it on himself. Pausing only to make his clothes larger he walked towards the older version of himself who was still on his knees.

"You have taken the victory." Piccolo Daimao said in a gasp of pain. "But if you absorb me then hate will pollute your heart once again. You will forget how to love. Is this something that you really want?"

"I'll take that chance." Piccolo said with a frown. "Even if I do forget I'm certain that Gohan would be able to teach me again. Also I'm beginning to see that girl in a different light. Maybe she'll be able to help me as well."

Piccolo Daimao lowered his head. "Then take my power." He hissed. "But realize that even once I'm gone I will take my vengeance some day. I promise you that." With those words he lowered his head and Piccolo placed his hand upon it. His body turned into something resembling energy and he disappeared into Piccolo's hand.

At that moment Piccolo's muscles bulged outwards and his aura flared about him. "This power." He whispered. "This power is incredible!" He moved his arms in circles and tried throwing a few punches and kicks.

"I never expected the incredible surge in power that fusing with him would give me." Piccolo said to himself. "With this strength I should be even vastly more powerful then either Nappa or Vegita, what a rush."

He turned to look at where Nabiki was lying on the ground. "I still don't know what's happening with her." He said calmly. "I hope that Mire plays his hand soon, I'm getting tired of waiting."

Kasumi frowned (not an expression commonly seen) as she gently ran her hand along the fence that was outside of Furinkan high school. "I can sense the residue of an evil spell of great power." She said to herself calmly. She closed her eyes and focused herself. "There is a being that possesses powers that are quite dark on the roof of this building." She thought. "Maybe he would know something of what happened to Nabiki."

"Teleport." She said gently. As soon as the words were spoken her body disappeared from where it had been leaving not a trace.

**************************************

A young woman appeared on the roof where Piccolo was watching Nabiki. Looking over at her Piccolo saw that she had long brown hair with brown eyes and her face was at first confused and then filled with concern as she ran to Nabiki's side.

"Are you alright Nabiki?" She asked as she gently lifted up the girls head and looked into her eyes. She touched two of her fingers to Nabiki's neck and held them there for a moment. "Her pulse is normal enough although a bit slowed." Kasumi said quietly. "Her body is alive but I'm afraid that her soul is somewhere else at the moment."

She looked up at Piccolo. "What happened to her?" Kasumi asked calmly. "Do you know anything about this?"

Piccolo cleared his throat. "Her soul was captured by an evil mage by the name of Mire when she attempted to the help of someone at her house." He said. "It's probably being held somewhere else." He looked back and forth between Nabiki and Kasumi. "They must be sisters." He thought to himself. "So, you must be the one that Nabiki was attempting to call."

Kasumi nodded. "I heard her voice just a few minutes ago." She said simply. "The poor girl was asking me for help. She was probably already under attack." She sighed and returned her gaze to her younger sister. "I suppose that there's nothing we can do but wait." She said quietly.

They didn't have to wait as long as they might have expected. Within a minute Mire's form materialized itself in front of them on the opposite side of the building. "I'm so pleased to see that you won Piccolo." He said in his scratchy voice. "I would have been disappointed at any other result."

"Right." Piccolo said in annoyance. "Now what have you done with Nabiki's soul?"

"I have it right here." Mire said confidently while lifting a small ball of black energy up for them to see.

Kasumi gasped and took a few steps towards the mage stopping only when he drew the ball closer to his body. She peered intently at it for a moment before nodding. "That is definitely Nabiki's soul." She said confidently. She sternly looked up at the mage. "Please release her." She said firmly. "Nabiki is a sweet girl who would never wish harm upon another. I don't know why you would imprison her like this."

"This reason is simple." Mire said calmly. "That man has something I want." He pointed at Piccolo. "And unless he gives it to me I will destroy her soul." He turned fully to face Piccolo. "Give me the dragon ball." He hissed. "Or she will face a fate that's worse then death."

Piccolo stood stoically facing him for a moment. "No." He said finally.

Kasumi gasped. "How can you just give up on her like that?" She asked in shock. "You can't just turn your back on her."

Piccolo shook his head slightly before speaking. "You don't understand so butt out." He turned again to Mire. "Even if you do kill her we can wish her back with the dragon balls so I don't see why you think that you have any leverage. If you somehow were able to acquire them then this entire universe would likely be in danger so I don't think that's an acceptable option."

Mire chuckled lightly. "You overestimate their power." He whispered. "After what I do to her soul Nabiki will never be as she was before even if she is wished back. She'll merely be a monster in human clothing. The power of the dragon is limited by the power of its creator and trust me when I say that Kami cannot undo what I will do."

"He's telling the truth." Kasumi said quietly. "He has the appearance of one who has completely given himself to powers of darkness. He could easily have the power to pervert a human soul beyond all recognition."

"The girl speaks wisely Piccolo." Mire said coolly. "I would suggest that you listen to her advice."

Piccolo appeared to be going through an internal struggle. "What will you wish for?" He said finally. "What will you request of the dragon?"

"Only information." Mire said. "I will wish for the location for a certain object that may be of some value to me later on. Even if I acquire this object it is unlikely that I will trouble the earth afterwards."

"I can't decide." Piccolo shouted to himself. "It's obvious what must be done for the good of the earth but I don't know if that's the best course. No one deserves the kind of fate that this man is describing." He looked over at where Nabiki was lying. "She looks peaceful, as if she was sleeping." He thought to himself. "I remember another one who looked so peaceful when they were asleep."

An image of a sleeping Gohan came into his head. Piccolo put his hand onto the image and remembered his words. "I won't let anything happen to you kid." He remembered. "I promise." Those words ringed through his mind again and again.

"What has that child done to me?" Piccolo asked himself in frustration. "How is it that I can feel love for another considering who I am?" He looked over at where Nabiki was lying. "And now that human girl Nabiki as well." An image of her cold face looking at him came into his mind. "Is it possible that Gohan has ruined me and forced me to change my view of humans in general? Never before would I have cared for this girl if it wasn't for him. Already I can feel my feelings for her growing. Now that I'm a human as well maybe someday we could even possibly be. friends." The last thought struck him as odd. "Friends with a human, a physically weak one at that. What an odd concept. But her magical powers are impressive; maybe she can teach me a few things about how to expand my own powers." Another thought drifted into his head, one that he refused to acknowledge. "And maybe someday we can be more then friends."

Kasumi was looking at Piccolo with concern but smiled when she saw something in his eyes. "I'm sure that you will make the right decision." She said kindly. "Please bring Nabiki home after you are done here. I'll be waiting for your and her safe return."

She looked up at Mire sternly. "Please sir. Once you are through here never bother any of us again."

Mire nodded curtly. "I will avoid bothering you." He said in his scratchy voice. "If only Piccolo yields that which I desire."

"Teleport." Kasumi said in a low voice. A moment later she disappeared into thin air.

"So have you made your decision?" The mage asked darkly. "Will you choose for this girl's soul to be destroyed or will you yield the dragon ball? It is now completely up to you."

Piccolo's face showed his inner struggle for just a moment longer before he sighed. He reached into his cape and removed the dragon ball and held it out before him. "First return the girl's soul." He said firmly.

Mire started to laugh. "Of course. But remember that if you betray me you will not be able to stop me from enacting revenge against her." He released the darkness in his hand and it drifted away revealing a small ball of a pure light. It hovered for a moment almost as if it were indecisive before it flew into the body of the girl that was lying on the ground. She twitched a few times and then was still. "Now the dragon ball." Mire demanded.

Piccolo tossed the ball the short distance between them before it stopped and hovered in the air in front of the mage. "Take it and go." Piccolo said angrily.

The blue flames began to burn even brighter. "It's beautiful." Mire said almost in wonder. "It will grant me what I wish. I thank you demon king." He said to Piccolo. "Enjoy your time that you spend with this girl." He disappeared in a burst of energy.

Piccolo slowly walked over to where Nabiki was lying and knelt down in front of her. "I hope that I didn't just endanger the universe for the sake of one human girl." He said to himself. But despite everything he somehow knew that it was worth it.

**************************************

The monster stopped his hand as a burst of energy alerted him to a new presence. Turning his head he saw a young girl wearing golden robes with silver earrings who appeared ready to topple from exhaustion.

Akane's eyes filled with horror as she took in the scene that was before her. "It's exactly like the vision." She said to herself quietly. Her eyes filled with rage. "Get away from him you monster!" She yelled defiantly to the large brutish being whose hand was still poised in mid strike. She paused as she realized that he was completely naked and quickly turned her eyes away so that she couldn't see him. "Maybe not exactly like the vision." She thought to herself.

Raku couldn't believe his eyes. "Akane." He gasped out. "What are you doing here? This is no place for you, you must leave immediately." With the exertion of those words he coughed out blood onto the stone ground and had to put his hands onto the ground to support himself.

"No, I refuse to leave you!" Akane yelled as she ran towards him. With an amused smile on his face the one who once was Captain Ginyu took a few steps back. "No, get back Akane!" Raku yelled in protest. "You're only endangering yourself by being here! Let me handle this guy, I can do it." Those last words were spoken with a quiet desperation that filled his entire face.

Akane slowed to a stop as she became lost in his blue eyes that were bursting with conflicting emotions. Her face became set and determined. "I can't do that." She whispered. "Because I know that Ranma is part of you. Even if it's impossible for us to be together I refuse to stand back and let you fight alone. Never again will I let you fight to defend me while I stand back helpless. Somehow fate has seen fit to give the ability to help you fight, so please," her brown eyes began to shimmer and became desperately pleading, "Please let me help you."

Raku's face began to twist with his internal struggle. Finally he forced a nod and grimaced with the exertion. "Just get yourself out of here afterwards okay?" He whispered.

Akane nodded in gratitude. She covered the last of the distance between herself and him and placed both of her hands upon his stomach.

"The damage he's received is extraordinary." She thought to herself with concern. "And I have no choice but to use my own energy to heal him. I can't tell him but I may end up killing myself to accomplish this." She bit her lower lip. "But since I can't have Ranma in this life anyways then maybe that's not such a bad thing."

"It's a little too early to start thinking like that don't you think?" A kind voice asked in her mind. "Who are you?" Akane asked in confusion before she gasped in remembrance. "You're the one from before who told me how to come here! Are you going to help?!" She didn't notice Raku's look of concern as she began to speak with herself.

The voice ignored the question. "Clear your mind." It said simply. "Make ready your body for my power and it will be channeled through you."

"I suppose that there's no choice." Akane thought to herself. "I shouldn't allow myself to die unless there's no other way, Ranma wouldn't want that". She nodded and cleared her mind with concentration. Before long she could feel a great deal of energy spring forth from inside her and flood her entire body. Gasping with the effort it was all she could do to keep the energy focused within her so that she could steadily release it.

"Healing touch." She whispered as she poured the energy out through her hand. Raku's stomach reacted instantly as it began to heal but the spell didn't stop there. It wrapped itself across his entire body and filled him with strength. The stream of power continued to move through her until Raku nodded to her that he was fine.

Akane sighed as the power drained out of her back to the same place that it had come from. "Who was that?" She asked herself in confusion. "I'm going to ask Maple as soon as I see him again where that voice is coming from."

Raku returned to his feet and tested out his arms. "I'm much stronger then I was before." He thought to himself. He looked up to where his enemy was standing with a confident smile on his face. "But still no match for him. He probably allowed Akane to heal me so that he could torment me for longer."

He looked down at the girl who was now sitting on the ground. "I can't believe how much she's changed." He thought to himself. "And where on earth did all of her new powers come from? I suppose that I can only be thankful that they appeared at all. If I survive this I'll need to ask her about this."

"Akane, it's time for you to leave." He said firmly. "Thank you for your help." Akane nodded slowly and returned unsteadily to her feet only to lose her balance and collapse forwards. Raku quickly caught her and then held her gently in his arms. Akane looked up into her eyes and caught her breath. "His eyes are so much like Ranma's." She realized.

Raku shook his head in sadness as he saw the expression on her face. "I'm sorry." He said quietly. "But that is impossible now. Please just leave and let me handle this."

Nodding in sadness Akane turned around and began to walk away from the conflict. "I'll need to rest for a moment before I have the energy to leave." She realized.

"Leaving our little party so soon?" The evil voice rang out. "I think that's rather rude don't you?"

"Leave her alone!" Raku yelled. "I'm your enemy now!"

The monster laughed. "Yes you are, but I was commanded to attack your heart as well as your body. And that girl," he motion to where Akane was trudging away, "that girl is the perfect weapon to use against you. So now she dies."

Raku and Akane's eyes both filled in horror at those words and everything seemed to slow down as the ravager rose up both of his hands and discharged a column of black of black energy. Raku tried to move in the way to intercept the attack or take it for her or anything but there wasn't enough time and he could only watch in horror as it shot past his position. He turned around slowly to see the attack closing the distance with Akane as she brought up both of her exhausted arms in a feeble attempt to defend herself. Many emotions flashed across her eyes. First was a sense of surprise mingled with horror. Following that was a sense of outrage at her helplessness. Finally was a look of acceptance. As the energy closed the distance with her wind from its wake made her clothing and her robes blow wildly about and dark shadows were cast across her face which clearly showed the changing emotions.

Raku didn't have time to even scream as he saw the girl that both Goku and Ranma had cared for in some way disappear in a burst of black energy. The energy through a great deal of dust into the air and Raku just watched it float gently to the ground in a desperate hope that she would be there when it cleared.

All he saw was an empty crater.

"Well I suppose that's that." The monster said with a smile. "So do you volunteer to go next Raku?"

"She gone." Raku whispered to himself. "Akane's dead." At that moment he felt his emotions inside himself twisting and turning. He remembered when Ranma had first met her in the Tendo dojo and how he had thought that she was so cute before their first fight. Memories of their adventures through the following crazy months flooded back to him and how as a doll she had saved him from Saffron's fireball. With the help of Goku he had finally learned that he loved her during their trials of the Joining. He recalled how she had fought to save him even when his mind had already been taken by the demon lord Rate. He then remembered Goku's first meeting with her when she had healed him on Snake Way. Goku had instantly loved her although not in a romantic way. He found love for her in the same way that he loved all of his friends, in a manner so uniquely pure and chaste that only one with the heart of a child could muster it.

When Goku and Ranma had Joined their emotions and feelings had Joined as well. What Raku felt now for Akane was now a kind of love that covered every part of the spectrum. At the same time he loved her with a teenage male's hope for romance and for the desire of a simple friend that time could be passed with. In this instance his love for her was made complete, neither Goku nor Ranma could have managed this kind of love on their own.

All Raku could see was the empty crater before him, the mocking voice of the monster behind him never registered. With the realization that she was gone he could feel something from his soul break free and flood his entire body filling it with rage. It was a beautiful, perfect rage that was more magnificent than anything he had ever felt before. It flooded every pore of his body and he could feel every muscle bulge outwards with the sheer magnitude of its power. He vaguely registered that he was yelling loudly and that electricity was filling the air around him but he didn't care, all that he was aware of was the loss he was feeling from Akane's death. He could feel the pigtail that had been touching his neck jump upwards at some hidden command and reach for the air behind him. Indeed the rage was so great that with nowhere else to go it burst upwards into his hair filling even that with energy.

**************************************

Three beings were present in a broken rocky landscape. One was a young man with black hair and a pony who was badly injured. Another was a girl who was a few years younger with black hair and appeared to be extremely tired. The third was a large purple alien who was standing uncaringly naked while he watched the two with amusement.

The girl turned away as soon as she laid eyes on him and approached the injured man in concern even though she was so tired that she could barely stand. He told her to stop but changed her mind after she spoke a few words with shimmering eyes. The girl then walked up to him and placed one of her hands on his stomach. A few moments later a gentle golden light began to leave her hand and entered his body which healed all of his injuries almost on contact.

Once the man was fully healed he stood up and spoke a few words to the girl. In compliance she attempted to stand up but collapsed against the man who caught her in his arms. After a few more words she began to walk away but was caught and killed by a blast of black energy from the large purple man.

"Well I suppose that's that." He said with a smile. "So do you volunteer to go next Raku?"

The man identified as Raku stared in shock at the crater where the girl had been standing a moment before. "She's gone." He whispered. "Akane's dead."

In a moment his sorrow passed and his expression became filled with fury. "Rrrraagghhhhh!!!" He yelled as his eyes turned upwards into his head and began completely white. Wind picked up around him and began to swirl his clothes about as an aura of electricity surrounded him. His muscles started to pulse and become harder and his hair began to reach desperately for the sky as if it were seeking something. Suddenly it turned completely golden and shimmered for a moment before it returned to its original color. Again it turned gold and spiked itself out above his head as the pigtail tied by the dragon hair turned completely golden and spiked out all over the place behind him.

A few seconds later the transformation was complete and Raku was standing still with his arms at his sides while his golden aura shimmered about him. He appeared to be slightly taller though that may have been because of the fierce expression that had taken his face. His blue irises had faded somewhat and his black pupils had turned a blueish green. His soft spikes were now much sharper as they practically leaped off of his head and were now a golden color though his golden bangs still hung off of the side of his face. His pigtail was angled off of his back so that it wasn't quite horizontal with the ground and was also golden and spiky. His muscles were much larger then before and appeared as though rocks had been shoved under them at some point in the past. Needless to say his appearance would have been suitable for a villain as well as for a hero.

"This is a complication." The incarnated power said with a frown on his face. "But does that actually make you any stronger? I am indeed curious to find out."

"You'll find out soon enough." Raku said seriously. "I don't have any idea what happened to me but you'll be the first to see." With those words his golden aura flared about him to an even greater size. "You'll pay for what you've done!" He yelled in fury. At the sound of his voice alone the ground below the monster began to crack apart.

**************************************

On a dark planet far away there was a small structure of obviously alien build that was wrapped in shadows. Inside the building inside a large but simple room two thrones were sitting next to each other with one almost twice the size of the other. In the smaller throne a small yellow creature with a sickly type appearance and who was wearing robes was sitting with a nervous expression on his face. Pacing to and fro in the room was a being almost twice the size of the smaller. This one was albino white with his skin almost having the appearance of metal and large sections of his skin were colored purple. His face was visibly frustrated and indentations could be seen in the ground where he had lashed out his tail in frustration.

"What is the problem Freezer?" Babbiti asked nervously. "Has something happened on earth that we should be concerned with?"

Freezer paused and turned his cold red eyes in Babbiti's direction. "Can't you feel it?" He said. "Even from here it's obvious what has happened."

"I'm afraid that I'm not as sensitive to the physical energy of mortals as you are Freezer." Babbiti said, trying to hide his nervousness. "Maybe you could tell me what has happened?"

Freezer raised one of his hands and a small computer terminal rose out of the ground in front of Babbiti. "Use the long distance scanner and see if there's anything interesting about what's happening on earth." He said simply.

Babbiti typed a few things on the computer and waited for a moment. "Well," he began, "I see Captain Ginyu's power has vastly increased because of the boost you gave him but that's to be expected."

"Keep looking." Freezer said impatiently while snapping his tail onto the ground again.

"What, impossible!" Babbiti said with his eyes almost bugging out of his head. "There's a power here that's as great as the being that you loaned your power, no it's even greater!"

"That's right." Freezer said. "The power of that cursed Raku has just increased so much that his may even be close to rivaling mine."

"But how could his strength become so much greater in such a short amount of time?" Babbiti asked in a panic.

Freezer's eyes narrowed. "It's because he achieved the transformation of the super-saiyajin, believed by almost the entire race to be a legend. But I knew that it was real, that was the reason that I destroyed the planet once it was no longer a use to me and that was the reason that I ordered the earth to be destroyed. I suppose that I was too late."

"How did you know that it was real?" Babbiti asked in nervous curiosity.

"Because only once before has my physical form been banished from the mortal plane." Freezer replied. "And that was when it was destroyed by a super-saiyajin that had lived 1000 years ago. I took solace in that he had to destroy himself in order to defeat me but it is still the only defeat that I have ever suffered." He clenched his hands. "For the time being we should leave the earth alone and hatch a plan so that we can destroy it."

"What of Vegita?" Babbiti asked. "He lived through the attack and even now is on his way back to one of our bases on the outskirts of the empire. Should we have him destroyed as well?"

Freezer lowered his head in thought for a moment. "I think I have it." He said in a victorious smile. "Don't you have the power to control those who have an evil heart and bring out their true powers?"

The small mage nodded. "Yes that is one of my powers." He said. "Are you suggesting that I control Vegita and then use him to destroy the earth? But how would he have enough power to defeat a super-saiyajin?"

"Simple." Freezer said. "We'll just have to activate his transformation. After you control him I want you to use your magic and put him into super intensive training. With each session take him to within an inch of his life, members of the saiyajin race seem to get a power up of from that. Once he too is a super-saiyajin he will be more then capable of achieving this goal."

Babbiti nodded as an evil smile came to his face and he stood up from his throne. "That is an excellent plan Freezer." He said. "Now if you don't mind I have some other business to attend to. When Vegita arrives I will make sure to control him and bring out his powers."

He started to hover towards the door before Freezer spoke to him again. "Babbiti, I have a question for you." Freezer said calmly.

"What would that be esteemed greatest of the demon lords?" Babbiti asked as he turned around.

"When will you be ready to release the creature of destruction from his prison?" Freezer asked calmly.

Babbiti looked thoughtful. "It will take me at least ten years or maybe even longer." He said. "The seal that my father placed on it is very complex you know. I'm not even entirely sure where in space it's currently located."

Freezer nodded. "And what of your first apprentice Mire, is he any closer to discovering the location of the Reality Shard?"

"I will make sure to contact him soon to discover the status of his mission." Babbiti said. "If he has discovered its whereabouts from the dragon balls we will know of it soon enough. I will see you soon Freezer." He added as he turned and hovered out of the door.

As soon as he left Freezer narrowed his eyes and removed all light from the room so that he was standing in complete darkness. Only his red burning eyes could be seen hovering there in the black.

"With the appearance of a new super-saiyajin things have become complicated." Freezer thought to himself. "And still I am unaware as to whether that damn mage Maple is involved or not. There are simply too many unknowns to take any rash actions at this time; I must wait for an opening."

**************************************

In a small comfortable looking room a young boy was lying asleep on a bed. His body looked badly bruised and battered and he was covered with numerous cut marks. As if he had been splashed with cold water he began to shift back and forth on the bed uncomfortably before he sat up with a start, breathing heavily.

"What happened?" He asked himself. "The last thing I can remember is fighting Captain Ginyu and then after that. nothing." He raised his head and began to stare into space. "I can sense two incredible energies." He thought. "One is horribly dark and the other." His eyes widened in disbelief before a smile filled his entire face. "The other is my father, and his power is absolutely incredible! But wait, I can sense Ranma's power too." His eyebrows wrinkled in confusion. "So are Ranma and my father fighting together against Captain Ginyu?"

"Oh Gohan are you finally up?" A voice asked in concern. Gohan looked over to see Mr. Popo standing at the entrance of the room.

"I guess so." Gohan said simply. "I have a bad headache though."

"Here, drink this." Mr. Popo said gently while bringing a small steaming cup over next to his bed. "This will make you feel much better."

"Thank you." Gohan said accepting the drink. He took a sip of the liquid and felt warmth spreading through his body. Almost instantly the aches and pains that were filling his entire body became dulled and the pain in his head eased.

"I'm so glad to see that you're okay Gohan." Mr. Popo said. "But I'm surprised that you woke up so early. It was only twenty minutes ago when Kami brought you here with the communication stone that Raku had given you."

"That was only twenty minutes ago?" Gohan asked in confusion. "Hey wait a minute, who's Raku?"

"Raku is the joined form of your father and Ranma." Popo said.

"The joined form?" Gohan asked. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"That means that they are now one person with the combined strength and intelligence of the two of them." Mr. Popo said.

Gohan's eyes widened in amazement. "Wow they sure got strong after they joined. As Raku they have to be at least 100 times stronger then Ranma was when he beat Nappa."

Mr. Popo shook his head in confusion. "Originally Raku was only five or six times stronger then Ranma. I'm not sure what could have happened to increase his power beyond that."

Gohan's eyes became determined and he began to move to get out of bed. "I have to go help him." He said seriously but was stopped when Mr. Popo put his hands on his knees.

"You know as well as I that Ranma and your father are capable of taking care of themselves." Mr. Popo said sternly. "What you need right now is rest."

Gohan shook his head and looked at Mr. Popo desperately. "Please, he could be in danger because of me." He said. "I need to help him."

"Do you really have such little faith in your father Gohan?" Mr. Popo asked.

His words caused Gohan to pause and think for a moment. "I guess your right." Gohan said grudgingly. "But I hate to have to stay here and not be able to help him."

"I understand how you feel Gohan." Mr. Popo responded. "On occasion I too become frustrated that I am not strong enough to help. But like I said before all you need right now is rest, please lay back down." With those words he turned around and left the room after closing the door leaving Gohan alone with his frustration.

Mr. Popo continued to walk down a few hallways until he came out onto the outside platform of the lookout. He saw Kami standing at the edge of the lookout staring down at the earth below.

"Is there any news Kami?" Mr. Popo asked his master as he walked up to stand next to him.

"Yes, a lot has happened." Kami said. "As you already know Freezer had landed on earth for a short time and transferred a portion of his power to Captain Ginyu, making him vastly stronger then Raku. When Raku's power was almost completely gone someone with holy magical powers came to him and restored his powers. Within a few moments I felt a great rage in his soul and his power exploded to become even greater then that of Captain Ginyu. I can't explain where his sudden burst of energy has come from."

"But all that matters is that it's there right?" Mr. Popo asked. "Now he'll have the strength to defeat Captain Ginyu and save the earth."

Kami sighed. "Perhaps I'm looking into this too much but I'm concerned as to Raku's ability to handle this new found power. It's so much greater then anything that this world has ever seen before. But if anyone's capable of handling it then it's the joined form of Goku and Ranma. So all we can do now is wait and hope."

Kami's eyes widened slightly and he turned quickly to look behind him.

"Is there something there Kami?" Mr. Popo asked in a hushed voice.

Kami stared at a moment at a spot in the shadows before sighing and turning around. "No there's nothing wrong. It's just that for a moment I thought that someone was there."

Together the god of the earth and his devoted helper stared at the planet below them where so many struggles were taking place.

**************************************

It was a comfortable looking but small hut that was residing on an island. Inside the front door there was a kitchen where an odd assortment of people was sitting around a table while a woman with black hair was cooking. In this group there were two men, one woman and a cat and a pig.

"Is the food ready yet?" An old man asked who was wearing sunglasses and had a long beard asked.

"Now please be patient Master Roshi." The woman with the black hair responded as she skillfully flipped a few of the eggs over. "They'll be ready in a moment."

"It was very kind for you to let us stay here Master Roshi." The large man who was currently taking up one side of the table said.

"Not like I had any choice." Master Roshi responded. "So Bulma." He said while turning to the woman. "Do you know why exactly Piccolo would be looking for the dragon balls?"

"I have no idea." Bulma said while leaning back in her chair. "But then again I've never known what he was up to. A wish was made only a few days ago but maybe he thinks that if he can collect them now he'll be able to make another one."

"Piccolo's never done anything that doesn't make sense." Master Roshi said seriously.

"I hope that Goku's alright." Chi-chi sighed to herself morosely while flipping the eggs once again.

"Oh I wouldn't worry about Goku." Master Roshi said seriously. "I think that right now he's more then capable of taking care of himself."

"What do you mean Master?" Ox King asked curiously.

Master Roshi sighed. "I've always had a six sense when it comes to Goku and I can tell that right now he's on earth and more powerful then he's ever been before."

"What, are you serious?!" Chi-chi yelled while abandoning the food she was making. While she was choking Master Roshi Oolong ran over to the pan that flipped over in a panic to save the eggs from the burner by turning into a giant spatula.

"Tell me, where is he?!" Chi-chi yelled while choking the legendary master. Ox King ran to the other side of the table and began to struggle to release his master from his daughter. "Please calm down Honey!" He said as he tried to pull her hands away.

Chi-chi appeared to calm down a little and allowed herself to be pulled away. "So where is he?" She asked angrily, as if she were about to attack again.

Master Roshi gasped for a few moments while his face gradually returned to its normal color. "That way." He pointed to his left. "Maybe a thousand miles. But any martial artist who has control of their energy in this entire world can feel his presence, it's that enormous."

"So why didn't you say so?" Chi-chi asked. "Let's go right now!"

"Wait a moment." Master Roshi said seriously. "He's not the same as he was before."

"What do you mean not the same?" Chi-chi asked while turning back to him.

"He's still Goku but I can sense that there's someone else there with him. It's almost as if two people are standing in once place at the same time."

"That doesn't make any sense." Bulma said curiously. "How could two people be in one place at one time?"

Master Roshi shook his head. "I have no idea." He said seriously. "But it's undeniable. Furthermore I can sense that there's someone else there with him whose power is almost as great as his. We may be in trouble if we go."

"I don't care, I want to see him!" Chi-chi yelled.

"I agree, I think we should go." Bulma said calmly. "And in any case it's a heck of a lot better then sitting around here. I'm starting to get kind of bored."

Bulma pulled a small capsule out of one of her pockets and walked outside where she threw it onto the ground, transforming it into a bus that had wings.

"Well then what are we waiting for?!" Chi-chi yelled as she ran outside to the air bus.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Master Roshi said as he walked outside. "I don't like the way the power that's opposing Goku feels. Its darkness is even greater then that of the original Piccolo. Perhaps it's another creature from hell."

Inside the pig was eating the breakfast so hastily left behind by everyone else as the cat left to join its friends.

**************************************

"Seven minutes remaining." Maple commented while looking at something that was around his wrist. "Only seven more minutes until they catch up with me."

His face twisted in pain and he collapsed to one of his knees. "What's happening?" He asked in a hushed breath before his eyes lifted in realization. "Pause!" He yelled. A moment later the cloud of pain left his face and he returned to his feet.

"Her soul is fluctuating wildly within her body." He realized. "She must be facing her death, that's the only kind of situation that would cause her to respond like this." He opened up the front of his robe and peered inside. "Are you responsible for this?" Something on his chest pulsed a few times. He frowned in annoyance. "Well I guess that it's my responsibility to clean up after you again. Why does it always turn out like this?"

He lifted his face up to look into the sky and held his hands in front of his body palm up. "Please come to your future and join me." He said calmly while a holy magical energy flared about his body. The magic began to condense and a human form materialized into his arms.

He kept his arms gently wrapped about the body of the teenage girl that he was holding while examining her face. "Not conscious." He said quietly. "She must have fainted at the same moment that the attack made contact." He sighed. "Well I suppose that it's for the best. Sleep well young one." He said while he shifted his arms to better support her head. "You've certainly earned your rest. It will be several years before the earth is truly in need for your services. But for now please just rest, when you wake your magic will be with you and you will be whole."

He looked up into the air as if he noticed something for the first time. "You can continue now." He said calmly. At his words the frozen past again began to creep forwards at its normal pace.

**************************************

Piccolo paused in mid air while holding the sleeping girl in his arms and turned to examine the sky. He was currently in his human form and was dressed in his typical white cloak and turban along with the rest of the outfit. While he was watching storm clouds were already sweeping across the sky and throwing out lightning in a storm that was obviously unnatural even to an untrained observer.

"So he's summoning the eternal dragon." Piccolo thought to himself. His face twisted with anger. "Damn, I shouldn't have traded the dragon ball for the soul of some human girl." He turned to look accusingly at Nabiki whom he was holding in his arms.

His face softened somewhat when he saw her peaceful expression. "Maybe she was worth it." He said softly. His face became thoughtful as he stared at his face and he blushed as some foreign thought entered his head. "No never, such a thing would be impossible!" He yelled out.

He continued to fly far above the city. "I can't allow such thoughts to enter my head; it is unfitting for someone who doesn't even have a gender." He thought to himself. "But my. predecessor said that I am permanently stricken with the ability to change into a human male with the touch of cold water. Which means that.." He again looked at the girl he was holding before shaking his head back and forth.

"Never!" He yelled. "I would never do such a thing! The very thought disgusts me." He again paused as Nabiki shifted in his arms. "I should quiet down so that I don't wake her." He realized.

He flew so that he was above the Tendo household and then quickly and gracefully flew down to the planets surface. He landed deftly in the yard and walked up to the front door. "Be in peace Nabiki." He said quietly. "You would be better off if you never got to know me." He slowly set her down on the door step and turned to leave.

Within two steps the door slid open and Piccolo came to a halt. "Ah, you must be the guest that Kasumi told us about." He heard a male voice say. "Thank you for bringing Nabiki back to us safely."

Piccolo turned and examined the speaker. He was a middle aged man with black hair and a black mustache who was wearing a martial arts gi. Currently he had a kind expression on his face.

"You're welcome." Piccolo said seriously. "Now if you don't mind it's time for me to leave."

"No, I insist that you at least stay for dinner." The man said. "Kasumi has told us that you're the reason that Nabiki is safe and well. Your place has already been set."

"No thank you, I have no need for what you call food." Piccolo said before his stomach began to grumble wildly. He blushed slightly and looked down to examine the ground. "Damn human hunger." He thought to himself angrily. His face became thoughtful. "Well, I might as well give food a try."

He turned to face the man in front of him. "Very well then, I accept your offer."

He smiled wildly. "I'm pleased to hear that. Oh allow me to introduce myself. I am Soun Tendo, and your name is?"

"Piccolo." He said.

"Very well then, right this way Mr. Piccolo." Mr. Tendo said as he picked up Nabiki off the ground and turned into the house. He smiled happily down at his daughter.

Piccolo paused for a moment before stepping into the house and turned around to look up into the sky. Dark clouds seemed to sweep across the horizon and within about twenty seconds the previously bright and beautiful day had given way to one that was as dark as night. "Mire is summoning the eternal dragon." Piccolo thought to himself before clenching his fists. "And I didn't stop him when I had the chance." He shook his head. "No, I've been over this once before. I made the right decision." He turned and walked into the house.

**************************************

Thank you so much for your help Ranko! I still appreciate it!