Merry Christmas everyone!! Just in time for the holidays here is the latest chapter of my fanfic ÒRevelations, Repercussions and Robots Oh My!Ó!! I hope you like it and if you do please leave a review because I love hearing how much people like my work. Thanks!!
At an undisclosed location, Same TimeThey say that Fate loves coincidences and what was happening at the current hideout of the ex-hell goddess Glorificus only reinforced this concept, much to the displeasure of her minions.
ÒWHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CANÕT LOCATE THE LAST DRAGONBALL!?!?!Ó Glory yelled as she pitched another minion headfirst into a slab of stone.
ÒW-w-we b-beg your forgiveness oh malevolent one! We have been trying day and night without food or sleep to locate that which you desire!Ó , beseeched the current leader of the minions just as those under him were working to extract his predecessor from the slab of stone, ÒWe cannot explain why the final dragonballÕs location cannot be determined but rest assured as of now we are tripling our efforts!Ó
ÒI know you will Dornon!Ó , Glory stated in a surprisingly calm and confident manner, ÒBecause if you donÕt what happened to Zarfon will seem like a walk in the park.Ó
This seemed to dispel most of the fears that Dornon had of following his ex-superior into death at the hands of the great Glorificus. Still it might still be a possibility if he didnÕt produce some good news and fast. However he had few leads where that was concerned and the few that existed were longshots at best. The first was to contact the local spirits and demons to see if they had heard or seen anything that might indicate the location of a dragonball. This was not very reassuring as those blasted Saiyans that the Slayer had befriended had decimated most of the demon population in the area. As for the spirits side of the lead they were of the sickenly good sort which meant that gaining their assistance in this matter would require some scheming of the deceptive sort. Another lead was to use the human tools of this modern era to track it down but that would be even more doubtful since most of the minions were more proficient with sorcery than science. The final option was to monitor the Slayer and her companions on the off chance that they might somehow find the dragonball before the servents of Glorificus discovered it. This would of course mean that another attack would have to be launched on the Capsule Corps building and the last one was only successful because of the Great OneÕs aide. All in all it briefly made Dornon wish he had chosen some other hell goddess to worship but he quickly brushed such thoughts away lest the great and powerful Glorificus hear such disloyal thoughts.
Entering the first chamber of the abandoned castle they had recently appropriated for their new HQ he decided to ask those in charge of the first lead what progress had been made. All about the room various objects of arcane and demonic significance were in use with at least five minions pouring their heart and souls into the rituals and ceremonies. There were some that looked like they might keel over dead at any moment but their unswerving devotion to their mistress kept them on track. Gairon, the minion in charge of this operation was busy putting all the data together into a coherent picture to be presented to the Glorious one. The look on his face did not speak of success but neither did it hint at failure and this was promising or at least more promising than nothing at all. Watching his steps and making his way foreward Dornon approached his subordinate hoping that hopeful news awaited him.
ÒWhat progress have you made Gairon? Our mistress is becoming upset!Ó Dornon asked in a way to convey the seriousness of the situation.
ÒMy underlings are working as hard as they can my brother.Ó , Gairon replied as he continued to try and read the parchment before him, ÒHowever the information we are receiving for that work is vague and difficult to interpret.Ó
ÒThe hellacious one will not be satisfied with such an answer!Ó , Dornon exclaimed in frustration, ÒWhat is it that is so incomprehensible?Ó
ÒAll the sources are saying that Ôbeings of metal and magic have delivered the sphere of Shenron to those who dwell in the shadowsÕ.Ó , Gairon replied nerviously, ÒI have used almost every means at my disposal to try and make the message more comprehensible but nothing has worked!Ó
ÒWell you had better find one that does work or youÕll be answering to her Greatness yourself!Ó Dornon stated as he turned and stormed out of the room.
Well that was less than productive! , Dornon thought to himself as he proceeded to his next destination, In time Gairon might be able to decipher what he has but it is doubtful that we have that time given the malevolent oneÕs current emotional state.
Walking down the spiral staircase that led to the level below he hoped that those proficient with the technology of this era were having more luck. Still when it came to matters of human creations it was doubtful that anything useful would emerge given that what they were looking for was arcane in nature. Still he could leave not stone unturned and no tomb left unopened if he wished to be spared the wrath of the mighty Glorificus. Upon entering the room they had converted for the purpose he found a considerable amount of activity before him. Looking for Narra, the female minion he had put in charge, he found her working feverishly at a computer with a look on her face that almost certainly indicated that she had something. This caused his spirits to rise immediately as it meant he might be one step further away from being turned into a bloody smear on the castle wall. Trying to delicately make his way through the bustling crowd towards his target he noticed that most of the people who were working on the computers were analyzing the same thing. This made his hopes rise even further as it meant a possible breakthrough that may be mere moments from becoming the answer he sought.
Upon reaching NarraÕs terminal he immediately asked ÒWhat progress have you made Narra? Have you located the last dragonball?Ó
ÒNot exactly Darnon but I believe my collegues and I are a lot closer than the other divisions.Ó Narra replied without looking up at him or breaking the pace at which she was working.
ÒExplain.Ó Darnon demanded as he felt his hopes teetering on the edge of a blade.
ÒAs you know the humans have a vast number of satellites orbiting this world for a variety of purposes ranging from entertainment to military.Ó , Narra said as she briefly looked up at Darnon, ÒMy collegues and I have been searching through their satellite surveillance photos since the last confirmed use of the dragonballs in order to determine where they could have landed.Ó
This bit of news made DarnonÕs hope rise again since what his underling was saying sounded reassuring even though he comprehended less than half of it.
ÒDoes that mean you know where the last dragonball is?Ó Darnon asked in the hopes that he would receive the answer he desired.
ÒNot exactly.Ó , Narra said as she seemed to quit what she had been doing and opened another file, ÒHere, let me show you what we have found so far.Ó
The first photo that appeared on the screen showed a mountainous region with random outcroppings of vegetation. At first Darnon could not understand the significance of this but then he noticed what appeared to be a humanoid shape in the picture. He couldnÕt quite place it at the moment but he was sure he recognized the being in the picture but for the life of him the name wouldnÕt appear in his mind.
ÒAs you no doubt have noticed there is a person in the picture here and at first we thought nothing of it but fortunately I decided to keep an eye on him just in case.Ó , Narra said as the excitement and pride rose in her voice, ÒIt wasnÕt until about an hour later in the satellitesÕ photos that we were able to identify the humanoid as the Namekian known as Picollo.Ó
Yes! That is who I thought it was! Darnon said with satisfaction as he became more interested in what Narra had to say.
ÒAt first I couldnÕt understand what this warrior of Earth was doing so far from his usual areas of habit but then I recalled the file saying that the good side of Picollo, Kami, was once the source of the dragonballs.Ó , Narra said as she slowly progressed through the photos, Ò That may allow him to find the new set of dragonballs and once I determined that it was obvious that he was out there to claim the last dragonball for himself so as to prevent us from aquiring it.Ó
ÒWonderful news!!Ó , Darnon exclaimed, ÒI will tell the great Glory that we have located the last dragonball for her!Ó
Before he could leave though Narra coughed in a manner that indicated that there was more that he should know.
ÒUnfortunately Picollo no longer has the dragonball we seek.Ó Narra said submissively in case any punishment was about to come her way.
ÒWHAT!?!Ó Dornon exclaimed as he whirled around and returned to NarraÕs side.
ÒWhile attempting to determine PicolloÕs present location be discovered that he had been attacked by three unknown assailants wielding formidable magical abilities.Ó , Narra explained as she brought up the pertinent photos, ÒThey were able to defeat him easily and aquire the dragonball for themselves but when we tried to track them using the same satellites they somehow disappeared.Ó
Deciding that it would be better if he remained quiet until Narra finished her explanation Darnon reigned in his emotions and simplely looked at her with nothing but a stony visage.
ÒThus for the last six hours I have had just about every person in this room working on a way to track them and just before you came in we got our first lead.Ó , Narra said as she brought up one final photo, ÒIntriguing wouldnÕt you say?Ó
ÒYes. Most interesting indeed.Ó Darnon said as he pondered the image before him.
The photo was one of Picollo attacking one of his magically empowered foes and actually scoring a decent blow. At the point of impact a significant tear had been made in the fabric of the assailants shirt and a cut made in the attackerÕs flesh. What was revealed upon computor enhancement was that beneath the cloth and the ÔfleshÕ was a complex assembling of circuits and wires. What possessed DarnonÕs attention though was not the mechanical aspect of the attacker but what was nestled inside the mechanics. It was a bright red ruby mounted on a silver buckle that had apparently been welded into the mechanical attackers metal frame. With this bit of information it was only a matter of time until the last dragonball was found. After all the minions of Glorificus were far more proficient in arcane matters than in technological ones and thus it shouldnÕt take long to track down what was obviously a power enhancement talisman.
Tokyo International Airport, 5:00p.mThis has got to be the most insane thing I have ever done! Pierce thought to himself as he stepped into the airport and headed for the luggage claim area.
When he had accepted the mission given to him by OÕConnel he had suspected it would be frought with peril but in this particular case not even his own paranoia was enough to keep him completely safe. There had been quite a few close calls on his way to Japan, some of which would have been the end of him had he not been what he was and had lived this long already. Still he considered it nothing short of a miracle that he had made it this far still in one piece with his cargo still in his possession. He had placed the box that his friend had given him in the most inconspicuous and practical bag he could find since walking around with a large metal box with engravings on it would have been stupid. Still it didnÕt make it any easier for him to stand there waiting for the bloody machine to spit out his luggage so he could leave before attracting any more attention. Eventually the machine complied with his wishes and discharged his luggage allowing him to proceed to the parking area where he had arranged for a rental car to be parked near the entrance. He just hoped that he could make a clean getaway without any nasty encounters since he only had one more change of clothes with him and he had no desire to try his hand at the latest in asian fashion. Ever since they got pulled into the modern era JapanÕs taste in clothes had taken a drastic nosedive with no room for kimonos or other elegant garb. Still the same could be said for just about every other country he had ever visited so there was really no use bellyaching about it.
It was dark outside but fortunately he could see his car from the entrance of the airport so that wasnÕt so bad. What was bad was the large black van parked three spaces ahead of it blocking his most direct route to his veichle. He didnÕt even have to think to know that the people in that truck were most likely not his friends and didnÕt want to give him a lift to the city of the future that Rupert was staying at the moment. For a moment he considered his options, hoping that at least one of them would allow him to leave peacefully and without causing a scene. Unfortunately that time was cut short when the doors to the dark van opened and three black clad fellows stepped out. He hoped that they were just out to get some fresh air but somehow he doubted it and those suspicions were confirmed when they started to briskly walk towards him. Deciding that he had best move this fight to someplace more isolated he turned to the right and began to walk as fast as he could without attracting attention. The farther he could get into the right side of the parking lot the less likely any innocent bystanders would get hurt in the dust up that was sure to happen once his fans caught up with him. After all the right side of the parking lot was surprisingly bare and thus nobody from the airport would be venturing that way anytime soon. He could hear the footfalls of his pursuers behind him getting closer but couldnÕt go any faster walking without actually changing into a job or outright run. That of course would attract attention from those bystanders waiting by the front doors of the airport which would lead to airport security being called in and from there things would really get annoying. Thus all he could do was keep going for as long as he could and hoped that things turned out the way he planned. It was at that moment that he felt someone else grab the back end of the bag carrying the box and cursed himself for not remembering MurphyÕs Law.
Not even bothering with the witty repartee he usually dabbled in before fighting he immediately spun around and landed a solid kick to the grabberÕs jaw knocking him back into one of his pals. Using the momentum from that move he continued into a spinning jump heel kick to the attacker to the immediate left of his first victim. For at least a few moments this has the desired effect of causing his attackers to back up a bit and rethink their situation. Unfortunately what they rethought was the idea of trying to take him in hand-to-hand combat since they immediately reached into their coats and pulled out magnums and automatics. It was at moments like these that most would send a prayer up to God for a little divine intervention but he had lived too long and seen too much to believe in that sort of thing so instead he did what came naturally. He unsheathed his broadsword from beneath his trenchcoat and charged his attackers hoping that both his weapon and the fact that he was attacking them would be enough to make them freeze for a few seconds. Sadly they soon recovered their senses but by this time he was just within effective range for his sword and this gave him a fighting chance. Not knowing who they actually were he decided that he would just render them unconscious rather than kill them. He had seen far to much death during his lifetimes to deal out to strangers without due cause and besides all it would do is cause them to bring even bigger guns next time.
Twirlling away from the gun directly in front of him he sweeped his sword down beneath it before slashing upwards and sending it flying into the air with the force of his blow. Not wasting time to think he quickly changed the direction of his sword hand and brought the hilt down hard upon the same manÕs head knocking him unconscious. With his other arm he elbowed the man to right of his first target in the face and heard the satisfying sound of a nose breaking. With that man temporarily distracted by the pain he turned his attention towards to the left of his first adversary and delivered a thrust kick to the manÕs mid-section sending him to the ground. By this point in the fight he had successfully dealt with all three of the attackers that had emerged from the van and an oppourtunity for escape now presented itself. Giving the man whose nose he broke one last punch for good measure he made a run for his rental and occasionally looked behind him to see if his three assailants gave pursuit. Eventually he got to his rental and quickly got in, throwing his cargo rather unceremoniously into the back seat. He thanked whatever rental service he had called for having the sense to put the keys in the ignition for him but as he turned the key to start the car he realized something crucial. A rental car agency wouldnÕt leave the keys in the ignition since that would make it an awfully tempting target for car thieves.
Oh bloody hell!! he thought to himself as he realized why none of his attackers were pursuing him.
Unfortunately that one thought was all that he had time for as a split second later the entire car exploded in a massive ball of flame.
Undisclosed Location, 5:30p.mÒThe messenger has been disposed of sir.Ó Said the voice on the other end of the phone line.
ÒGood. What of the box he should have been carrying?Ó Seven asked with concern.
ÒThere was no box with him sir. Just his luggage and that went up in smoke with him.Ó Replied the operative with some measure of pride.
This concerned Seven deeply for a moment as two possibilities came up: either the Watcher that had just been killed was a decoy meant to distract him from the true courier or else these bumbling fools just destroyed the most precious artifact in their former organizationÕs history. If it was the former than he would just send this agent and his comrades to the other locations to reinforce their comrades. Should the latter be the case he would have his androids deal out a painful permanent punishment for them when they returned. Until it was decided one way or another he would have them return to base since the explosion would undoubtably attract attention of the law enforcement variety and it would look suspicious to have black clothed men sifting through an explosion site.
ÒReturn to base. Nine will debrief you and accept your reports.Ó Seven said in as neutral a tone as possible.
ÒAye sir.Ó Said the voice on the other end before he hung up.
With that matter dealt with it was on to more important matters such as dealing with the inevitable confrontation with the Beast Glorificus and the eventual recovery of the Slayers from the transformation. Of the two he considered Glory to be the bigger problem since she and her party were more inclined towards homicidal courses of action than the rogues. Despite the androidsÕ efficiency in dealing with Picollo he wasnÕt altogether convinced that they could take on the hell goddess and her minions on their own. He only had a small number of human allies with him from the Watchers organization and only a third of them were trained in the arcane arts. If the Beast were to somehow locate them and attack they would be hard pressed to defend themselves much less retain the one dragonball they had in their possession. Therefore he had to somehow divert her attention away from the dragonball and more in the direction of the Slayers and their friends. The question was how to do that without inadvertently divulging the location of the dragonball since it was a well known fact that Glory could drain information from her victims. The obvious course of action would be to send one of his lowest underlings who would not even come close to knowing the location of the dragonball but that would still give the Beast the locations of almost all of their safe houses. That would be an unacceptable loss of resources and would severely limit the amount of bolt holes for him to run to should this one be compromised.
There has to be a way to turn this to my advantage! Seven thought to himself as his mind raced to find a solution to his dilemma.
Then it hit him, the perfect solution to both his problems and one that would leave him free to pursue his own objectives later. It would require him to sacrifice a few operatives but thankfully he knew just the ones to throw to the Beast.
Capsule Corps, Living Room,6:30p.mI have a feeling itÕs going to be one of those nights! Giles thought to himself as he continued to look through his books for a solution to their current set of problems.
Just about everyone was in a state of shock from the information that they had received from BulmaÕs aunt a few hours ago and it didnÕt look like it was going to wear off anytime soon. Saiyans. For some reason known only to the insane Glorificus the spell that had hit Buffy and afflicted Faith and Dawn had somehow transformed them into Saiyans. It made no sense, no matter how many different ways they looked at the situation none of the Scoobies or Z fighters could come up with a plausible reason for such an act. As Saiyans the two Slayers and one KeyÕs powers would only increase and make things even more difficult for the former hell goddess should they come into conflict in the near future. Unfortunately he hoped that such a confrontation wouldnÕt be for a while since the three young women still needed time to recover from their ordeals before they would be in any shape to fight. That was assuming of course that the spell didnÕt affect their minds in the same way that it had affected their bodies otherwise they could essentially be completely different people now. Different personalities and different ideas of what they mission in life should be as well as a profound lack of basic morality. According to what he had gathered about the Saiyan race they were a warrior race where power meant everything and the weak were treated like cannon fodder. Saiyans seemed to enjoy a good fight and saw nothing wrong with picking on the weaker races. ÒThe strong will survive and the weak shall perishÓ was the way that Vegita put it and considering that he was once a member of the Saiyan royal family it was fairly safe to say that the rest of the race thought along those lines as well. He just hoped that their lives as human beings would keep them from going to far in following the Saiyan PrinceÕs example. Aunt Beru was still running a few genetic tests on blood samples taken from the girls to ascertain whether or not the transformation was merely cosmetic or if it was complete in every way possible. He supposed that it could be one big joke with Glory being the only one to get the punchline but somehow he doubted that the Beast would play with her prey like that. Hopefully by comparing the girlsÕ blood with that taken from Goku and a reluctant Vegita would put such speculation to rest.
As for their second problem, the theft of the last dragonball and the mysterious new player, they were only slightly better off in that department. Since it was an established fact that Dr. Gero was the creator of the androids it was fairly safe to assume that whoever owned these androids had some connection to the mad doctor. With that in mind Willow, Tara and Bulma were searching through the internet and a few government databanks for records of GeroÕs activities prior to his death. Hopefully they would come across something that would give them at the very least a place to start looking for the dragonball. What they could do once they found the location they were looking for was another thing if the state Picollo arrived in is any indication of the threat they faced from this unknown player. That was what made unseen opponents so dangerous, with little known about them it was exceedingly difficult to predict their next move or even guess at their motivations. All they could do was try to cover all the bases and hope for the best although not knowing how many bases there were was going to complicate matters. So basically they were all in a state of limbo at the moment, waiting for something to nudge them in a certain direction.
Just then the entire building shook but it was only for a moment and didnÕt really bother Rupert in the least since it had been something of common occurance since word of the girlsÕ condition got around. Most likely it was Vegeta again, the Saiyan prince was having a bit of difficulty with the idea that the three young women he had seen as pathetic only a few days before had been transformed into full blooded Saiyans like him. From what he could tell Vegeta valued his Saiyan pedigree and his pride more than anything else and to suddenly have three beings given that pedigree for some unfathomable reason was somehow an affront to him and his people. Thus he was venting his unhappiness in the enhanced gravity room and had been doing so ever since the news was released. He had heard Dr. Brief complain more than once that he would have quite the workload now thanks to VegetaÕs temper tantrums. He sympathized with the man as he too at times found it difficult to do his job as Watcher with Buffy often going her own way rather than following his directions. Still both of them were determined to do their duties regardless of how ultimately futile it was and how much they sometimes wished they were in another line of work.
Suddenly Rupert got the distinct impression that someone was looking over his shoulder and when he turned around he found Goten standing there apparently trying to make out the writing in the book the Watcher was reading.
ÒIs there something I can do for you Goten?Ó he asked as he closed the book and placed it down on the table with the others.
ÒNah, Mom just sent me to tell you that sheÕs fixed up a small snack for you in the kitchen if you want it.Ó , Goten replied with a smile, ÒShe thought you could use it since you looked a bit run down.Ó
Now that the half Saiyan mentioned it he was feeling a bit hungry and add that to the fact that he had not been able to make much progress with his research perhaps a break was in order. Standing up and doing a quick stretch to get the kinks out first Giles began to walk towards the kitchen and some much needed sustenance. Yet even during this supposed break he couldnÕt help but think about the dilemmas they were facing and what new ones might develop along the way. It seemed that this was going to be one of those missions, one where MurphyÕs law ruled and complications were a certainty. The last time that it happened was during the whole situation with Adam and the Initiative which had ended in a bloody massacre. He just hoped that things wouldnÕt be as bad this time around otherwise he may just consider retiring for good while he was still able. Upon reaching the door to the kitchen he could already smell the tea on the other side as well as something that smelled like buttermilk biscuits. His stomach reacted to these smells rather violently as it gave off a loud rumble as if giving voice to its desires. Certain that those on the other side of the door had heard that he tried to enter the room as calmly as possible but that failed miserably when he saw who else had decided to have a snack.
Sitting at the table with about five empty bowls next to him and ten more filled with a variety of dishes waiting to be eaten was Goku who was stuffing his face as if he was afraid that they might disappear if he didnÕt eat quick enough. It always amazed him when he saw this because regardless of how much food the Saiyan hero ate he always maintained his fit and muscled form. The only possible solution was that his Saiyan metabolism burned off the food almost as fast as he could eat it. He gave a slight chuckle as he tried to imagine the grocery bill that Chi-Chi must be forced to deal with to feed both Goku and Goten. It seemed that the chuckle he just had caused the two kitchen occupants to notice him as Goku paused from his feeding frenzy and Chi-Chi stopped washing the dishes.
ÒHello Mr. Giles, I see you decided to take a break from working with those books.Ó , Chi-Chi stated, ÒYour tea and biscuits are on the table. I hope theyÕre to your liking.Ó
ÒThank you, I am sure that they are quite fine.Ó Giles said as he pulled a chair in front of his snack and sat down.
ÒFfo, aniigh lugg wiff da boofs?Ó Goku asked with a mouthful of noodles in his mouth.
ÒGoku! How many times have I told you not to speak with your mouth full!?Ó Chi-Chi scolded as she gave her Saiyan husband a look familiar to anyone who ever took the marriage vows.
Quickly swallowing his food Goku said ÒSorry Chi-Chi.Ó
ÒThatÕs all right. Now what were you asking Mr.Giles?Ó Chi-Chi asked forgivingly.
ÒI was just wondering if he had any luck with his books.Ó Goku replied with an almost child-like curiousity.
ÒUnfortunately no I havenÕt. I have looked at all the spell books I have access to as well as a few online resrouces that Willow showed me but nothing has come up.Ó , Giles said not even bothering to show his distaste for computers, ÒThe more I think about it the more I am convinced that Glory is not responsible for the transformations that Buffy and the others are going through.Ó
ÒThen what could it be?Ó Chi-Chi asked with a bit of her own interest.
Just then the door swung open and there standing in the doorway was Trunks who was helping an apparently injured to stand.
ÒI believe I can answer that question.Ó Replied Pierce before he collapsed box and all to the ground.