Given the method in which I've developed this story, trusting Dai Kioshin would be a very bad thing. But Goku hasn't seen everything you guys have. Also, he really didn't have a choice. Without medical treatment he would have died, and he certainly could not have fought Dark Buu. Not that this doesn't have interesting consequences...
In regard to death... the ultimate sacrifice, eh? Again, I will answer nothing, though I will say that making the ultimate sacrifice isn't always successful. Also, this story is going to go beyond even a second death momentarily.
I had a loaded question asked of me (if I wanted to be an author): The question is difficult to answer, and I am uncertain if I am adequately equipped to answer it in this stage of my life. There is one project I am currently working on for serious publication, and there are several others that I would create were I a manga-ka. At the moment I am uncertain if a career entirely based upon writing would be best or even feasible.
The next chapter will be updated late, because I will be on a mission trip.
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Episode LIII: Final Saga
Cold, dark eyes gazed at the planet below. Like lightning a grey arm flashed, hurling a sphere of ki that glittered swiftly down into the atmosphere. It vanished entirely for a moment, then the planet died in a fiery explosion. The flames swept around Dark Buu, but the monster was already moving toward the next planet in the line without a backward glance.
Though Dai Kioshin had managed to save Goku's life, it could do no more than delay the inevitable. Dark Buu's expression did not waver as he destroyed the next planet and continued on systematically. The longer everything was delayed, the more his power would increase. As Darkness began to collect across the Afterlife, a shadow was falling over the universe. Only a sliver of light remained at one end, and when it had been eclipsed everything would be consumed by the Darkness.
But first there were problems to be dealt with. Surely Daio Kioshin was planning to use Goku's life energy for some magic. That could prove troublesome, but it would not be a challenge. No seal could lock him away any longer. What occupied more of Dark Buu's mind was the explosion of Light he had felt from across the Afterlife. Someone had gone to a new level of power, gained a new authority. That, he knew, did not bode well, so he was tracing a path of destruction toward the location.
Hurling another sphere of energy toward the next planet, Dark Buu was taken off guard when a blast came flying back at him. Scrunching his head down into his body, the grey warrior barely evaded his own attack. Something had returned his blast? A green streak came flying at him, and Dark Buu found himself hard pressed to keep up with a heavy assault he had not been prepared for. So Piccolo had come to him.
The next moment a foot smashed into the back of his head, sending Dark Buu flying through the air. Taken off guard, he was unable to dodge as 18 plunged toward him. Her hands bit into his sides, and then a terrible Light began to creep over his being...
Dark Buu jerked away, leaving parts of his Darkness to evaporate in 18's hands. Skidding back in midair, Dark Buu realized there was another ki behind him too late. The monster attempted to dodge, but Piccolo's blast still tore through his stomach. As he forced himself together again, 18 swept up to him, embedding her glowing white fist in his head. Light began to burn through him, spreading over his being.
Terrible Darkness exploded silently, sending both Piccolo and 18 hurtling far from Dark Buu. Regaining control of their flight, the whirled to face Dark Buu just in time to see his being knit itself back together. The rough red edges of his body darkened once more, and soon his body was whole. Power flooded over him, and a darker shade of grey worked over Dark Buu's skin.
"So you have broken into the Legendary level," Dark Buu murmured, calmly watching them. "Unfortunate, but not unforseen. You will not be allowed to interfere."
Immediately he leapt into the attack, raining blows down on 18 at a nearly invisible pace. She found herself only barely able to defend against his full assault. When she blocked his blows her Light no longer burned him, it was pushed back by the Darkness that coated his body. Sensing Piccolo attacking from behind, Dark Buu jerked a hand behind his head, slapping aside both of the Namek's kicks.
Deflecting a punch from Dark Buu's single arm, 18 smashed a fist into his stomach. For a split second Dark Buu gaped, and then Piccolo's elbow bit into the back of his head. He careened down toward the very planet he had been about to destroy. Matching pace with him, Piccolo and 18 gathered energy. At the same instant they fired, aiming to crush Dark Buu between their blasts. Halting in midair, the monstrosity of Darkness barely stopped over the blasts that collided with devastating force.
Realizing they had missed, Piccolo and 18 immediately cut off their blasts. Before Piccolo could discern Dark Buu's location, the warrior smashed him in the side of the head. Moving with the blow Piccolo flipped backward and managed to deflect Dark Buu's next attack, though the assault drove him backward. Punching too slowly, Piccolo could only wince as Dark Buu jerked the blow aside and sent his own fist aiming for the Namek's head.
A series of swift ki blasts struck Dark Buu in the side, knocking him away. Stopping himself in midair, Dark Buu allowed the blasts to continue to smash into his body. Slowly and painfully he turned to face 18, who was still firing. Her face was incredulous; she knew how much ki she had in her blasts. Dark Buu's expression was completely blank, but somehow the Darkness in his eyes seemed to be smirking.
"By now you should realize legends are the worthless playthings of fools," he hissed. "They said that there was a Legendary Evil, and a Legendary One to fight it. But there is only power. Light and Darkness. There is no destiny. I will utterly destroy everything in my path, whether it is called Legendary or not."
A massive sphere of ki behind Dark Buu made him break off his oratory immediately. He blurred out of sight, barely vanishing before the blast tore through the area where he had floated. So it had been a distraction attack, he realized, and a rather good one. Piccolo had almost been fast enough to hit him with the blast, which might have been damaging. Unfortunately for them, it was not enough.
However, Dark Buu failed to realize the trajectory of both warriors in time to dodge their next attack. Piccolo and 18 punched from opposite sides of the monster, and their fists made contact through his chest. Dark Buu made a slight gagging sound, and then the two rained blows down upon him as he hung defenseless.
Throwing out his arms to his sides, Dark Buu sent a crackling wave of power out around him. Both warriors attacking were sent hurtling through the Afterlife, managing to regain their flight some distance away. 18 arced to stand beside Piccolo, cautiously watching their opponent. Before them, Dark Buu focused and his body returned to its muscular physique, the damage from their blows fading away.
"How much does it take to stop him?" 18 asked softly. Piccolo fired a one handed blast that it took Dark Buu and moment to avoid and then responded grimly.
"He's immune to physical damage," Piccolo told her. "I don't think it's possible to cripple him. The damage we're doing isn't physical: his energy is slowly draining. If we weaken him enough and blast him to atoms, he'll be gone for good."
Slicing forward, Buu swiped at both of them, narrowly missing. Changing the direction of his momentum in mid charge he flew after 18, fists fueled by his full energy. His first blow managed to knock her aside slightly, so his next smashed into her stomach. Stunned, 18 was unable to avoid his axe handle that immediately followed.
Dark Buu's complete offense, however, left him briefly open ,and Piccolo capitalized on the moment. By the time his foot smashed into Dark Buu's back, it was surrounded by a thick layer of ki. Rocketing into the air from the blow, Dark Buu changed directions and thundered down toward Piccolo in a flying kick. At the last instant the Namek ducked, and Dark Buu realized that 18 had been standing directly behind him, eclipsed by his body. Her hands glowed dangerously with ki.
The blast encompassed Dark Buu entirely, sending him hurtling through the planet's horizon. A rain of kienzan flooded down toward him the next moment. Focusing on dodging the sharp energy formulations, Dark Buu was unable to dodge the hand that grabbed him in a choke hold. Immediately slipping out of it, Dark Buu reformed his head just in time to see another of Piccolo's kienzans blow through his torso. As his parts slid away, Dark Buu was unable to dodge 18's lashing attack, which lopped off his head.
Roaring for the first time in the battle, Dark Buu flung his hands out on either side of his body, an aura exploding around him before he even bothered to repair himself. Gigantic blasts swept toward both of them; Piccolo managed to dodge but 18 was forced to raise her arms in defense. The sheer force of the attack sent her hurtling down toward the planet's surface.
Cursing under his breath, Piccolo realized that Dark Buu would be focusing all his power on him in mere seconds. He needed 18 to be able to stand a chance against this monster. She was still alive after his attack, but would need a few seconds to recover. Best to stall, then.
Slamming his hands together, Piccolo focused as swiftly as possible. Dark Buu grated to a halt as his opponent suddenly divided, once and then again. Soon a small army of dopplegangers stood in front of Dark Buu. All of them dropped to a fighting position as one. Then they began streaming toward him, a solid line of attacks.
Dark Buu scoffed at the foolish attack, though his face betrayed no emotion. Did this foolish being really think that he could be fooled by such a dated technique? As the bodies flew toward him, rather slowly compared to his full speed, Dark Buu calculated there were at least fifty. If each of them had a fiftieth of Piccolo's total power... then none of them could even hurt him.
The Piccolos flew by in swift succession, and Dark Buu remained where he was without dodging. Each blow merely bounced off him worthlessly. All Piccolo had bought himself was more time... and the instant the last doppleganger passed him, Dark Buu intended to turn and blow all of them away.
For an instant the last of the Piccolos was before him, a slight smirk on his face. Too late to move, Dark Buu could only wonder about the expression. Seconds later he received his answer as the Piccolo's fist buried itself inside his grey flesh. Hurled backward by the direct hit, Dark Buu narrowed his eyes, annoyed. He attacked as quickly as possible, aiming to destroy the last clone. Dark Buu discovered he was a moment too late; all the Piccolos reformed into a single body, which bashed his blast of ki aside.
iHow?/i Buu glared at the other warrior. Piccolo merely grinned at him, then attacked. Easily Dark Buu ducked the blow, and then felt a new presence enter the fight. So 18 had recovered then, and was attacking. Her fist struck the back of his head, driving him toward the surface of the planet.
As he fell, Dark Buu discerned the true nature of Piccolo's attack. Most of the copies had been pathetically weak, and one had retained almost all of Piccolo's power. Thus he had been lulled into overconfidence and made a critical mistake. Genius. Dark Buu determined to take this Namek's life force to utilize his intelligence and unique abilities for future battles with opposition.
Piccolo swept down to strike his falling opponent, but found he could do no more than keep himself alive as Dark Buu abruptly unleashed a flurry of blows. Making one movement a hair too slow, Dark Buu prepared to deflect Piccolo's strike... and was surprised as the Namek dropped out of the sky like a stone. For a moment Dark Buu was puzzled, certain some manner of attack was coming.
A ki flew toward his back swiftly, and he barely turned in time to see 18 flying toward him. Both her hands were cupped before her, and energy disks were pouring from them. Each was a kienzan, Dark Buu realized, as the energy cut his body apart. Still in pieces from the attack, Dark Buu countered. Grabbing a severed piece of his skin, he hurled it toward Piccolo and simultaneously drove a palm into 18's chin as she neared him.
Following up on the female warrior, Dark Buu was bringing a fist toward her head when he felt a slight stinging pain. Had Piccolo managed to actually destroy the small portion of himself Dark Buu had thrown? An instant later Piccolo struck Dark Buu's reforming back with a flat palm. The blow dealt far more damage than it first appeared, as Buu shattered into hundreds of floating pieces.
Instead of reforming himself, Dark Buu descended upon 18, wrapping himself around her in a tight grey cocoon. Gathering energy in his hands but unable to attack for fear of hurting 18, Piccolo could only look on in horror.
Stars. Stars surrounded him. It was like he was floating in the night sky, no planets nearby or even visible; just himself and the stars. Goku breathed deeply, though there was nothing to breath. This wasn't space. That much he was certain of. But at the moment he had more important things to worry about, like Dark Buu.
Looking over himself, he discovered that his power had risen dramatically. Then perhaps this Mystic transformation had actually worked. But where was he now, and where was Dai Kioshin? Glancing down at his physical body, Goku discovered that his clothing had been repaired. Too well repaired, in fact... he hadn't worn a sash like that for many years. Why was it still there?
Abruptly the sash was gone, and Goku blinked. He could have sworn it was there a moment ago, but now that seemed very far away. What had it been about a sash? Something weird was going on here, and it disturbed him at the core of his being. Whatever it was, it struck him as a fundamental paradox... that probably wasn't good for reality. For that matter, why were there so many stars around him? Nowhere in the galaxy where there stars this thick in the sky.
"This is the heart of the galaxy," a voice whispered. Whirling about, Goku found that no one was visible. He narrowed his eyes and moved to a cautious defensive position. "It no longer exists," the voice explained, "though once this was what the very center of this realm looked like. Everything around you, even you yourself, is a product of what once was. This is a shiftless place."
"Where is it and who are you?"
"Ah, yes. You are always so concerned with forms." Something shifted, and Goku felt as though he was on the palm of a giant being many times his size. Something like a rushing wind tore past him, and then a being simply was. One second there had been nothing, and then next he was floating in space some distance from Goku.
Whatever it was, it was cloaked in a black robe. Its hood cast an unnatural shadow over its face, so Goku could see nothing of it. Both its hands were gloved in a strange black substance, and the creature's feet were invisible under the floating robe. It was unnaturally still, nothing of its robe shifted with its movement. Still, there seemed to be a power about it that made Goku almost shiver.
He realized that it had ignored his first question and was about to repeat it when the form spoke again. This time it's voice no longer seemed to come from everywhere. "Allow me to assure you of one thing, Son Goku. This was meant to be the end for you. When you die here, all that is you will die. I must destroy you," the figure dropped into a fighting stance, "but when you are gone my existence will terminate. So make it fun, will you?"
Before Goku could respond he was forced to jerk away from a blow that nearly took off his head. This guy, he felt certain the figure was male now, was pouring all his energy into an offensive. With his new speed, Goku realized it was only moderately difficult to evade the attacks. As soon as the guy spent too much of his energy, it would be time to counterattack.
As he dodged, he tried to place the figure's voice in his mind. It did sound familiar, but not quite normal. Frieza? It sounded vaguely like Frieza, but that might have been his imagination. Cell? No, that seemed similar too, so he was just making correlations in his head. Odd indeed.
Slowly Goku realized that the figure wasn't slowing down. Even though he was burning his energy, it was like he was working from an infinite source. Putting on a burst of speed and moving back, Goku was slightly shocked as the figure kept pace with him. Quick reflexes...
Throwing back his head, Goku intended to go Super Saiyan and blast his opponent back. His power was as cloaked as he was, but if this was his best than he'd be destroyed in Super Saiyan. To Goku's surprise, he ran into a solid wall. Unable to transform, Goku could do nothing as the figure's hand grabbed his head and smashed it into the ground.
Ground? Kicking at his opponent, forcing him to back away, Goku flipped to his feet. Immediately he started, though not enough to be struck by a blast from the cloaked figure, because of what he saw. They were no longer in the starry expanse, but instead on a greyish beach. Unnaturally blue water was lapping at the shore. Before he could move further his opponent was suddenly flitting before his face, ready to strike.
Unleashing his new power, Goku blew him back. The cloaked figure flew through the air only briefly before gaining control of himself and landing on the ground. Disoriented, Goku stuck with what he knew and got ready to keep fighting. Now, however, the figure didn't seem to want to keep up the battle.
"This is the beginning of the first planet," he explained, "back when it was young. So pure, and yet so not pure. Because there is the choice of good, to do anything other than good must be evil. Already evil choices are being made; already Darkness is being created."
"This can't be real. Where are we really?"
"I assure you, this is exactly what the first planet appeared like." The figure shook its head. "You may be wondering why you can no longer go Super Saiyan. Such is easily answered. While the Mystic transformation raised your power, it automatically blocks off all levels of Super Saiyan."
"Then..." Slowly Goku realized that his power now wasn't even on par with Super Saiyan 2, much less Super Saiyan 3. That meant that Dai...
"It's called a trick," the cloak told him blandly. "But you have to die now."
As it moved forward, Goku smirked and unleashed his attack. The energy he had been charging during the entire conversation broke along the ground in three swift lines that all met each other at the cloaked figure. Raw power erupted through the air, creating an explosion and making Goku brace himself. When the light faded, the figure hung in the air, robes slightly tattered. Moments later the robes reformed themselves.
"Nothing more than an exercise in futility," the figure began, but then it abruptly stopped. Moments later Goku phased into being before him, performing a Solar Flare directly into the hood. Before it could move further he smashed repeated swift blows into the figure, hitting solid flesh each time. Again and again he bashed the figure, knocking it about the air and finally pile driving it into the ground as he sensed it recovering.
Leaping back, Goku watched carefully as it rose to its feet. Abruptly it laughed, and the sound was hauntingly familiar.
"I trust you aren't stupid, and you realize that I dwarf you in power. But I bet at this point you're thinking you can win if you fight cautiously, make me waste my energy, and do heavy damage often. Pointless efforts." It slid out of a fighting stance. "I will show you the futility of your actions. You have one minute to do your very worst to me. After that, perhaps you will have enough sense to despair before I destroy you."
Realizing that if it was a trap it was a poorly prepared one, Goku hurled himself forward, slamming a blow into the side of the figure's head. It jerked to the side and Goku was prepared to evade a counterattack, but it merely returned to its feet. Attacking from every possible direction, striking thousands of blows, Goku beat the cloaked figure through the air. Sensing his minute was nearly up, he uppercutted his opponent into the air and then fired a massive blast over it.
Black tattered robes fell to the ground. Moments later the cloak rose again, reforming around the dark body within it. Before the figure was even half way up its robes looked as though nothing had happened to them. Casually leaning his head back, the figure jumped to a higher level of power, and Goku realized that he had done no more than barely chip away at its life force.
Laughing softly, the figure shook its head at him in mockery.
"No more toying around; you disappoint me," his opponent muttered. "The end."
It promptly vanished, and before Goku could even express surprise its fist moved a fair distance into his chest. Then blows were raining down on him from all sides, far faster than he could hope to keep up with, if he could even see them. Eventually he fell back and smashed into the ground, bruised and bloody.
He had fallen on a street, Goku realized. Around him and behind the figure standing over him they were in a different world once more. There was a city around them, bustling with life. People were rushing around them, ignoring the two warriors in the middle of the street. Cars got near the cloaked figure and exploded in flame that consumed even the metal, and yet not a single head turned.
iHow...? How can he be so strong?/i
"I am strong because it is an intrinsic requirement of my being," the figure answered his unasked question. "I am the representation of the power that has been called Legendary. In any context that is dangerous, but when certain conditions are met, it is unstoppable. You stand no chance against me."
Just as the figure raised a palm and sent a gigantic blast encompassing him, something tore. Something ripped through space and time, and reality cracked away from the blast of preternatural power. The inhabitants of the city continued to go about their business as a terrible emptiness floated from the cracks in the foundations of existence itself. Cosmic dust faded away, and Goku was standing, eyes blazing, trembling with power.
The Legendary One gaped, and Goku smiled. His eyes glowed softly.
"This isn't over yet."
With insane speed the cloaked being snapped forward, leg flying to the side of his head. Just as quickly Goku raised an arm and deflected the attack. Both of them punched forward at the same time, fist hitting fist. The shockwaves from their battle shook reality itself.
"Perfect," Dai Kioshin whispered to himself. "For all the evil machinations of my opponents, the plan will still reach its completion flawlessly."
"What do you mean, master?" his apprentice grunted, staggering beneath his load. On his back, Goku twisted and flinched away from imaginary blows. Vainly his body tried to move, though it used no actual ki. Taking him to the most secure location in the Afterlife, Dai Kioshin's palace, was no simple task. Of course, Dai Kioshin took no part in actually carrying him. Such was a lowly task, after all.
"If you cannot understand, I will not explain it to you," Dai Kioshin answered tartly.
"If he breaks his bonds," the apprentice warned, "there will be great danger. Surely by now he has understood the depth of our deceit. If he wakens, neither of us will be able to stop him."
"He will not break free," Dai Kioshin said firmly. "The death trap is going perfectly. While he can stand against the Legendary One, he stands no chance whatsoever of defeating him." He glanced down his nose at the younger Kioshin. "No one can win such a battle, not against the essence of the greatest force known to the universe. Because of this, he will be firmly bound long enough for us to do our work. When that is complete, the result of the battle will be completely irrelevant.
"Besides, even if he escapes he is weakened by the Mystic power up. Without us, he would be destroyed by the newer and more powerful Evil. Though he does not know it, he is completely helpless. Soon, all the meddlers will be able to do nothing and the Evil will not be able to stand against me. Nothing they do will matter."
"Why won't it matter?" the apprentice asked, somewhat dully. The elder Kioshin ignored him.
"Set the body down here," he commanded, pointing to the floor of the temple. As his apprentice hurried to obey, Dai Kioshin knelt beside Goku and focused. Beneath his breath his swiftly muttered arcane words, even as his hands gently formed the motions required for the spell.
"What are you going to do, master?"
"Shut up!" Dai Kioshin barked. "I have no time for your stupid questions. We must hurry!"
Swiftly he gestured his apprentice come closer and kneel beside the body. Abruptly with a swift motion Dai Kioshin slit his apprentice's throat. As the dying Kioshin collapsed to the floor, Dai Kioshin moved his hands into the spurting blood. It clung to him unnaturally, and slowly began to form a large sphere in his hands. As it hovered Dai Kioshin wiped blood from one of Goku's wounds and added it to the wobbling sphere.
Instantly the sphere contracted down, falling dangerously toward Goku's body. Muttering as fast as possible, Dai Kioshin formed it into the outline of a prism. The blood red lines formed around Goku, encasing him in an invisible coffin. An unnatural stillness covered the entire area as Dai Kioshin moved into the second phase of his spell. A small, perfectly formed crystal appeared before him, glittering in the light. He carefully set it in the air, just at the center of the prism.
A hum began, one on the edges of a person's hearing, that would drive most mortal men insane. It continued as energy began flowing off Goku's body, arcing around the dark red lines and flowing into the crystal, which began to glow brighter and brighter. Near the bottom of the crystal a still liquid began to flow, rising toward the top. Smiling, Dai Kioshin stood and watched the process. As that crystal slowly filled with light, his victory came closer and closer...
"Wha... what are you doing?" the apprentice gasped, from the ground. Glancing down at him, the highest Kioshin was only slightly annoyed. Nothing could annoy him much now, when his victory would come in a matter of fifteen minutes.
"I will explain it for your simple mind before we are rid of your incompetence forever," he sneered. "Goku may lose the fight in his mind, but it will only serve to strengthen his soul. But that soul is being extracted into my crystal. Just as he loses the battle, his soul will be removed to prevent him from dying. Because the Mystic transformation directly affects the soul, his Super Saiyan transformations will have returned. However, the result will be a soulless creature, completely bound to my will."
"But... that would..."
"Bah, stupid fool. Never could you think of such great things. Without a soul he will lack all moral imperative. Because I hold his soul, he will do everything that I command. With our enemy's greatest weapon under our control, with more power than ever before, nothing will be able to stop us."
"T... terrible..."
For a moment Dai Kioshin merely glanced down at the dying Kioshin as his blood seeped away into the soil. Ah yes, his apprentice had served his task well enough. After this, never again would Dai Kioshin need an apprentice. The power of Evil within him, the power of Goku at his command... nothing could come close to challenging him. Abruptly his face twisted into a cruel smile, and he smashed a foot down, ending his apprentice's life immediately. No use listening to him whine.
A loud yell broke over the battlefield, and 18 abruptly shattered the sphere of Dark Buu around her, sending him flying apart in fragments once more. Piccolo rushed in, grabbing 18 and pulling her away before Dark Buu spun violently to regenerate himself, annihilating all the nearby ground. Letting go of 18 and turning back to the grey monster, Piccolo winced slightly.
Now, Dark Buu was very angry. His expression was blank, as it always was, and his intent was destruction, but now his was entirely focused upon them. Both of them had resisted his attempts to absorb them, and Piccolo realized that he wanted nothing more than to start his complete and total destruction with the two of them.
With incredible ferocity Dark Buu charged toward them. At the last second he vanished from sight, reappearing between them and bashing them aside. Both were still flying through the air when Dark Buu smashed devastating kicks into them, sending them crashing into the ground.
Higher in the air, Buu charged down toward Piccolo at full speed. Raising his hands, the Namek fired a large blast toward his opponent. He gaped in shock a moment later as he realized that Dark Buu made no attempt to dodge, merely taking the damage and continuing. Both his hands grabbed Piccolo around the neck, knocking him back to the ground and beginning to choke the life out of him.
Immediately 18 attacked from behind, her kicks taking out a major portion of Dark Buu's body. Without turning he repaired himself and sent both of his antennas extending back, wrapping around her wrist and waist. As she struggled with the extensions, Piccolo continued to choke. Intending to further the process, Dark Buu moved down to head butt Piccolo at full strength.
Just before the attack struck, Piccolo fired a beam from his mouth that sliced up through Dark Buu's face. It recoiled in pain, giving Piccolo an opportunity to roll out from under him and 18 a chance to shatter her bonds. Before his face had even been restored, Dark Buu flung a fist toward Piccolo. The Namek smashed one palm into the ground, the impact sending him flipping out of the way of Buu's blow.
Flowing to his feet, Dark Buu generated an aura around himself. Dark red flames lit up over his body, glowing darker and darker until they were nearly black. Abruptly he struck swiftly, critical blows driving both the other warriors to their knees. Leaping up into the sky away from their counter attacks, Dark Buu generated a sphere of malevolent black light around himself. Their energy attacks struck it and deflected harmlessly.
Moving forward as fast as possible, Piccolo slammed his fingers into the sphere and found his hand repulsed. Forming a fist, he began pushing it into the sphere, making Dark Buu's defenses slowly give way. Narrowing his eyes, Dark Buu increased the energy in the defensive field, forcing Piccolo to use all his strength to avoid giving up ground. Sweat rolled down the side of his face just in the effort to stay where he was.
In focusing on Piccolo, however, Dark Buu made a very dangerous mistake. 18 teleported directly behind him within the sphere of power, her hands glowing behind her with a Kamehameha. Before he could recognize her presence, she fired it point blank into his back.
Instantly the sphere snapped, sending Dark Buu flying through the air and barely missing Piccolo, who barrel rolled out of the way. Flung through the air, Dark Buu floated above them, then let out an earth shattering yell. Darkness exploded from around him, swirling violently. Raising a hand, Dark Buu concentrated a blast of pure Darkness, which flew from his hand of its own power.
iSo fast.../i already the attack struck 18 directly, catapulting her backward toward the planet, where she quickly vanished. Dark Buu checked to see if she was still alive and found nothing. Good. As he had suspected, an attack of pure Darkness could negate even the power of Light. Now for Piccolo.
But Piccolo was gone. A second later both the Namek's legs drove into Dark Buu's back, making him stagger forward. Immediately following up, Piccolo launched his charged blast toward the back of the grey head, but Dark Buu swiftly ducked beneath the attack. Flipping forward, he slammed both legs into Piccolo, who fell backward, almost lifeless.
Turning with the same malevolent intent in his eyes, Dark Buu focused on Piccolo, aiming to destroy the falling warrior in the air. Just as he was sweeping down to strike the warrior, however, Piccolo's eyes blazed open. Light as intense as 18's poured from his eyes, exploding from his body and driving Dark Buu back. Hissing in anger, Dark Buu beat away the encroaching Light that began to eat away at his being.
Getting the attack under control, Dark Buu focused on Piccolo and discovered that he had his hands together and he was muttering something... a seal! He was trying to do the same seal that Babidi had trapped him with! While Dark Buu knew he was immune to the dismissing seal, this one could well limit his power considerably. Such could not be allowed.
Charging another sphere of Darkness, Dark Buu fired it before Piccolo had time to ready himself to dodge the attack. Just before it struck him, however, Piccolo hurled what he had finished off the seal. Instantly the Darkness crackled over him and he let out a cry of pain before being thrown over the horizon. Dark Buu watched him fall headlong and creash into a mountain, then checked for a ki... there was none.
Two more obstacles to complete control of the galaxy had been removed. Now there were only two remaining, and then his plan would have spread too far for anyone to stop it. His eyes glowed darkly as he considered Dai Kioshin. Foolish old man, thinking he was controlling anything. No more than a mere pawn, as he had been for all the millennia of his life.
About to move from the battlefield, Buu suddenly felt his limbs shake in weakness. What was this? Pain all over his body, pain he hadn't realized existed. So they had managed to deal him a great more damage than he initially realized. Looking down to survey the damage that had been done, Buu started slightly as he realized his skin had changed to a dark red.
"No!" he roared, angrily smashing and grinding one fist into another. Foolish Namek. In his dying breaths he had managed to affix part of the seal once more... enough that a shell again surrounded his true power. Now he was trapped in this weaker, inefficient, foolish form. Were he to run into Goku now, he would be finished.
Flying to the ruins of a destroyed city, Buu floated to the center of the destruction and planted himself firmly on the ground. Drawing a protective shield over himself, he settled down and closed his eyes. Dark energy began to crackle over his body. Healing would take very little time, full recovery even less. Once the last remains of this accursed shroud were gone, he would only have to destroy the meddlers, and then his mastery over the galaxy would be complete.
Collapsing to the ground, tasting blood heavily in his mouth, Goku struggled even to move. The Legendary One stood behind him, laughing evilly. Around Goku, the city lay in ruins, its inhabitants scattered over the streets. This had been none of their doing. Midway through the battle everything had shifted again to this backdrop that Goku thought was eerily familiar. It seemed to be many years after the last time they had been in, basically modern Earth... but Goku felt certain he would never see what came after.
"You're an interesting case," the cloaked figure told him from behind. "By sheer determination you've managed to fight at basically Legendary level, though the comparison is of a mere child to an adult. But now, you are finished. It'd take a miracle for you to survive. And I'm afraid my power is the only one that will be doing any miracles."
But as Goku struggled with weakness, he glanced down and saw something lying on the ground. A Sensu Bean. How could one possibly have appeared here? It made no sense, couldn't be reality. Even if it existed in his world, it would... stuffing it into his mouth, Goku felt its magical powers instantly spreading over his body, healing it entirely. Underneath the Legendary One's cowl two eyes blazed as if he realized he had made a huge mistake. Power blazed around Goku and blasted the Legendary One backward.
Again they battled, the Legendary One still easily dominating Goku but now finding himself forced to use even higher levels of power than before. Often blows crashed into his body as well as the saiyan's, though none of them appeared to do any damage. Once Goku broke the cloaked figure's leg at the knee, but within a few seconds it was operating perfectly once more.
As the black cloaked figure rushed down upon him, Goku abruptly burst with another level of power. His hair flew up and became golden; his Super Saiyan aura crashed into the Legendary One, sending him flying away. Immediately Goku continued to strike, battering him several times before a blaze of power lit up around the Legendary One and his power spiked yet again. Almost disdainfully the Legendary One brushed him aside.
Crashing through the ground, Goku vanished in a cloud of smoke. For a moment the black cloak fluttered at the edge of the dust, watching and waiting, and then a fully charged Kamehameha smashed into him from behind. Blown much further than usual, the Legendary One turned and discovered Goku stand with his hands cupped, hair flowing in full Super Saiyan 3.
"How are you doing that?" The Legendary One seemed interested, in the way a scientist studies dirt. "Utilizing both the Mystic and Super Saiyan transformations at once, I mean. I'd thought that the two were mutually exclusive."
The only respond he received was a lightning quick blast from Goku, which sent him tumbling backward. For a moment the Legendary One was stunned at the incredible new level of power Goku had broken into. Immediately Goku capitalized upon the moment, bashing as many haymakers into his opponent's body as he possibly could. Eventually the Legendary One lashed back at him.
Struck by the crushing blow, Goku was sent hurtling backward, plowing through the street for about half the city. He felt nearly dead, but never the less grinned slightly. This time, his opponent had not gone to a new level of power to strike him. Goku knew he was still outclassed, but it was possible he had actually reached discovered the maximum power his opponent possessed.
Already the figure was standing before him, one hand raised, energy gathering at his finger tips. "Well, I admit you're strong," the Legendary One said calmly, as if he hadn't been fighting. "You've shown a surprising about of resilience, and ability to bend reality around you. Such will power... 'tis almost more terrifying than any mortal with Legendary power. But against me, it cannot possible be enough. Frankly, if you even found a way to run I would be impressed."
Gathering as much ki as he could while the Legendary One was occupied, Goku poured it into himself. The ki burned away like chaff, consumed instantly by the sheer power he was putting out. Still, the amount he had charged up allowed him to fight on level with the Legendary One for almost seven seconds. For seven perfect seconds he was even with the Legendary One, eventually smashing a blow into his opponent's face.
Pushing himself further, Goku continued the fight. It had been going on for a long time, he didn't care to know how long. Time passed differently here then everywhere else, even the strange Afterlife rules. It might have been days. The Legendary One had incredible power, one that far outclassed Goku's, and its arrogance and stupidity were all that kept Goku in the fight.
Around them, even the broken city vanished. Now even the planet had vanished, leaving only a blank nothingness. Again they were in the starry expanse, though no longer at the heart of the universe. Calling off its attack, the Legendary One stepped back on the blank grey plane, glancing about. One by one the stars began to go out, vanishing into a terrible Darkness.
"This is the end of everything," he explained softly.
"Is this happening now?" Goku demanded. How long had actually passed? What about 18 and Piccolo?
"Now. Before. Later. What does time matter here? Now we are beyond time. This is Darkness' dream for the entire universe, for every dimension that makes up all of existence. This is it, the final phase of reality. After this, there is nothing else. All that had any reason to be loses its reason. There will be nothing." Both black gloved hands cupped forward, aiming toward Goku's chest. "It is a fitting place to end this."
Both of them had been steadily charging while watching the stars go out, and now brilliant energy lit up in their hands as they faced off. It arced and quivered, incredible power that threatened to destroy everything near it. Around them, the galaxy continued to be consumed by the all encompassing Darkness. The last star went out, and as one they fired their beams forward.
Their clash sent a massive crack through reality, making a chill breeze sweep both beings' clothes around them violently. Bit by bit Goku's beam gave way. Destructive energy roared close to him, wanting to rip him atom from atom and annihilate his soul completely. Yelling in anger, frustration and determination, Goku put on a new burst of power, throwing the beam back. It halted almost immediately, and neither party moved, neither giving way in the slightest.
"You will die," the Legendary One's voice echoed to him in his mind. " Acknowledge that I am your superior in every way. There is no power in this existence that can possibly compare to mine. I encompass your petty being entirely! You have nothing I do not have!"
"Except a reason to live." Goku didn't know what made him say it. Images of Piccolo and 18 flashed through his mind. Energy began flowing through him. He had a reason to live, he had people to care about. His passionate anger flowed through him, burning him like a grass fire. This burned through his spirit just as the Legendary One opened full throttle. Both beams jumped and expanded, becoming even larger but matching each other power for power.
Backlash from the energy ripped through Goku's clothing in places, flapping it almost painfully against him. The Legendary One's cloak was likewise flying in the wind, and sweat fell from his hood. Eventually the wind blew away the hood of the cloak, making his face be fully revealed. Goku's jaw hung slackly, and his anger dissipated. Almost immediately his beam lessened in strength, and the terrible energy rushed toward him...
Then a complete serenity came over Goku's face. His anger was gone, even his stubborn determinedness vanished. All of this seemed to matter no more than leaves in the wind, soon gone, soon pointless. Everything here suddenly seemed impartial, transient. Abruptly, in a way he had never known before, he iunderstood./i
"iIt is finished,/i" Goku said softly, voice carrying to the Legendary One. His beam exploded with power, ripping apart the opposing energy and striking the Legendary One. For once in the being's existence, it felt true doubt. For once an attack struck it and dealt true damage. For once it was defeated. Even as it was rent apart by the power of the attack, it refused to believe what it had seen. A miracle.
For a moment Goku hung in space, his being no more than a shell. He was spent, completely and totally. It might be ended for him, but he had won. Even if he died here, he had defeated this final opponent. In a way, it made his entire life seem worthwhile, seem to have purpose. Faintly he could sense Piccolo and 18, knew they were still alive. They would be victorious somehow. The universe would somehow avoid the terrible end that had been planned for it. His chapter of the story might be over, but things were just beginning.
Silently Goku fell backward into the embrace of shadows...
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Two...