"Hury, we must get beyond the mountain. The caverns there will shroud us." The elder Namekian waves his village on.
"Elder Tsuno, what's going on! Why is the ground shaking!?" a small one trembles before him.
"Do not worry, young one. Just follow the warriors. They will keep you safe."
The short, round, and elderly Tsuno puts on a brave face for the children. He doesn't know what descends upon the village, but his senses tell him the danger is far too great to overcome.
"Elder Tsuno, look to the horizon, I see something!" One of the warriors points in the opposite direction they travel.
Tusno quints his eyes to focus. He understands instantly. "Take cover! Hide wherever you can!" The panicked Namekians dash behind stones and under hills.
Fast approaching the village is a slug-jin force numbering in the hundreds. Leading them is a round and large slug-jin commander with wings upon his back, coincidentally named Wings. They quickly fill the empty village.
"Where the hell is everyone?" The dumbfounded commander scratches his head.
"Sir, it looks like the village was recently evacuated." one solider reports.
"Darn It! Why do these punks gotta make my job harder!" Wings pulls off his helmet and throws it through a building. He then goes on a tantrum, smashing standing structures with his hands and feet.
"Sir, should we uh. Should we look for them?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, let's do that." He scans the surrounding terrain. "Hmmmm." His limited mental capacity prevents him from rationalizing a strategy. Instead, he begins to blast away at the hills around him.
The frightened Namekians shake in their hiding places. Tsuno watches his nearby kin fearfully. Finally a blast ignites the location of a few Namekians. They let out screams as the explosion engulfed them. Tsuno places his hand over his mouth to hold himself back from screaming. A surviving child crawls in the direction of Tsuno, reaching out an arm to plead for a savior.
Wings makes his way over to the injured child. He stops in front of him. "Looks like I got a bugger! But, no dragon ball. Oh well, at least he'll make a good snack."
He picks up the child by the leg and hangs him over his gaping mouth. Screams of terror come from the terrified child, but Tsuno is unable to act. He closes his eyes to avoid the sight. The sounds come to an abrupt stop when Wings makes his first chomp. A few more bites later and a grotesque belch signify the end of the meal.
"You monster, I'll get you for that!" A Namekian warrior rises up from the hill beyond.
Tsuno reaches an arm out to try and stop him, but it's too late. The other two warriors from the village also rise. With a battle cry they charge the slug-jin commander. Their kicks and punches stagger Wings, but do little to damage him. Growing in irritation, Wings latches onto one of their legs and slams him into the other two.
"Alright, Which one of you slimes have it!" He tosses the Namekian in his hand into a boulder, shattering it.
"H-Have what!" One of the warriors says as he staggers to his feet.
"The, uh… The dragon ball! Dummy!"
"Pff, Of course you're here for that! Well tough luck, you're never laying your hands on it!"
"Your busted face I will!"
This time Wings starts the engagement. He grabs two by the head and slams them together. As the third closes in from behind, Wings swipes his arm. He decapitates the warrior with a single strike. He then bites the skull of one of the Namekians in front of him. His victim yells in agony until the jaws crush the green man's head like an egg.
The last surviving warrior stands paralyzed in fear. Wings laughs as he approaches. With one quick punch he tears right through his opponent's chest. With his heart in his hand, he clenches down until it bursts. The warrior drops to the ground motionless.
The sight sends all the remaining Namekians into a panic, they leap from their cover and sprint away. They don't make it far. A barrage of blaster fire swallows them up.
Tsuno let's out a pained scream, but before he loses himself to sorrow he picks up the dragon ball he had carried. He doesn't allow their deaths to be in vain. With a prone roll, he manages to slip into the water beside him. The chaos masks his escape. As the explosions echo through the water, Tsuno swims to a sea cavern.
He waits until ten minutes after the last explosion before surfacing. His eyes meet the sight he already knew he would see. Tearfully he checks for any survivors.
"E-Elder…" A weak voice finally breaks the drone of the wind.
Tsuno quickly rushes to the source. "Don't try to move my brother. I will mend your wounds." He kneels beside the gravely injured Namekian and wraps a rag around the hole in his stomach.
The Namekian raises his hand to urge him to stop. "It's too late for me, Elder." He coughs a pool of blood. "Please, just don't let our deaths be for nothing. Save Namek…."
The life fades from his eyes. Tsuno grips his hand tightly while clenching his eyes to fight the pain. He lets out a scream and falls to his hands. A minute later he rises, the bloody rag in hand. He ties the stained cloth around his head in remembrance and leaves the village.
Hundreds of miles away, Cui prepares to invade his first village. He stands overlooking a rocky hill with his weight leaning onto his forward leg.
He whispers to the child beside him. "Looks like the plan is going smoother than anticipated. We need only to stop him from having all seven, isn't that right Squirt?" He grins menacingly.
"Smoothly? You almost screwed everything up you idiot! And don't call me Squirt!" She gives him a menacing glare, careful to keep her voice low. "...And uh… yeah, You need all seven to grant a wish. That's what Piccolo told me at least.."
"That big green idiot friend of yours. From what I've seen, Slug's got him eating out of his hands like a dog. I've got a funny feeling that he doesn't even remember who the enemy is."
"Don't worry about him. Piccolo might not be the brightest, but he's a hero who fights in the name of Satan. Heroes fight villains, and there's no bigger baddie than Slug."
"You should meet Lord Frieza. He takes evil to a whole new level, heheh. You shoulda seen what he did to my whole family!" The grin on his face doesn't even flinch.
Videl eyes the disturbingly proud fish-man with a judgmental gaze.
Cui notices her stare after a brief second or two. "Don't you forget Squirt, once we get the dragon balls this truce is over. I won't hesitate to kill you or your stupid friend." He winks at her with devious intent.
"Yeah, good luck with that."
A whispering voice penetrates between their shoulders."Lieutenant Cui has all the luck he needs. I've been saving my stools for weeks as a charm to ensure that, little miss." The dead-eyed Slug-jin face stares straight ahead.
"What the actual!" Cui jolts back in horror, though recovers quickly. He clears his throat and addresses the soldier. "Why don't you take a seat with the rest of the troop. If I need you I will call for you." He gives him a firm pat on the back.
"Huh? The troop?" The soldier scratches his head in confusion.
Cui looks back. His whole twenty man unit is nowhere to be seen.
"Where the hell did they go?"
The slug-jin points toward the village. The troops have already begun their charge. "For Lieutenant Cui!" the chant as they do.
Leaping out of the village are three Namekian warriors. The soldiers attack on sight, but are easily dismantled. Within seconds the whole troop is downed and groaning in pain.
Cui slaps his palm to his face. The scene of stupidity nearly bursts a blood vessel.
"Well they were dumb enough to follow you, so I'm not the slightest surprised."
Cui pops Videl on the top of her head for her remark. The two, alongside the remaining slug-jin, walk their way toward the Namekians.
Coming out of the village to meet with the warriors is an older and fatter Namekian, the village elder.
The two parties meet in the middle.
"I am Elder Moori, why have you assaulted our peaceful settlement?"
Cui makes a proud stand in front of the elder. "I apologize greatly for that little mishap, I assure you I did not authorize such a brazen attack."
"A commander who can't control his own troops can hardly be called a commander."
Cui can't stop the anger from showing up on his face. He tries painfully to smile through it. "Well they're a hard bunch to work with, you must excuse me."
"What are you after then? Food? Water?"
"I was hoping you might be willing to part with that dragon ball of yours."
Moori's eyes squint and his lip furles. "You must be mistaken, we have no such things."
"Oh, but I'm not." Cui extended his hand and motions for him to hand it over.
The warrior Namekians react by taking battle stances.
"I must warn you. Do not speak of dragon balls again, or you may end up like your friends there. If you need food or shelter my home is open to you. If you come as invaders then you will be treated as such."
"Wait." Videl chimes in. "Please, we don't want to hurt you. We just need the dragon ball."
"What exactly do you intend to do with the dragon ball?"
Videl hesitates. She starts and stops a few times, but reaches an answer. Her hand twitches as if trying to grasp something in her boot. "That's personal."
"I'm going to wish for immortality! Or invincibility? No, maybe a really big gun." Cui blurts his wishlist like a kid discussing the toys they want.
"Shut your stupid trap!" Videl kicks Cui in the shin.
"Enough! I've heard what I needed. You will never see my dragon ball." Moori turns around and begins to walk back.
"No!" Videl shouts after him as she takes a step forward. Her arm reaches out pleadingly. "M-My, My dad!"
Moori stops, he tilts his head to look over his shoulder. He waits for her to continue.
"I just… I just want to see my dad again! I need to bring him back! He was noble, honest, and… uh, warm! He didn't deserve to die!" Her wimperings are deaf to his ears.
"People die. It is the natural order of things. I pity that you have crossed the stars just to hear this, but you must move on. Be at peace with his passing, so that you may be at peace with yourself." Moori resumes his exit.
His words freeze Videl in place. Her muscles twitch in shock. Her vision becomes fuzzy as the rage begins to consume her. She snaps her hand into a clenched fist. Her body boils with hatred.
"Squirt?" Cui steps away from her. He'd never seen her in such a state. Nervous sweat drops pool on his scaly skin.
"I expect it from a bone-headed demon. But from you? What kind of person are you! Who are you to decide what's best for me!"
A burst of energy crushes the ground beneath her feet. The sporadic flares that emit from her cause Cui to recoil. Like an animal, she bolts toward Moori to pounce him. Luckily the Namekian warriors intercept her in time. They deflect the girl with an energy blast. The shot sends her flying back and into the ground.
Moori doesn't react. He leaves the nuisance to his warriors. Cui leaps back to avoid being caught up in the battle. The warriors surround Videl while the dust clears from her. When she finally gets to her feet, she glares at them with savage eyes.
"Satan sand!" She unleashes a handful of dirt in all directions around her. It's enough to momentarily stun the warriors. She uses the moment to dash into the knee of the one directly in front of her. The snapping sound in the joint informs her of the damage.
The warrior reaches out to grab her, but she slips right through his arms and past his head. Her arm hooks around his neck and she drops to the ground to slam him by his throat. The other two warriors are quick to assault her.
She narrowly rolls out of their punches and leaps to her feet a few meters away from them. She's able to get off a blast in each hand that blows back the two charging her.
Her breathing becomes heavy. The warriors eventually recover and take stance once again.
"This one's strong, but they're no match for the three of us together."
The other warriors nod in confirmation.
They dash forward in unison. Videl blocks the first chop. She pulls back to evade the kick that follows. Her eyes lose sight of the third warrior. A strong strike to her collar bone identifies him. She spits from the impact. The four feet of the other two slam into her stomach and nearly tear her in two. The girl is sent shooting across the dirt. Half a dozen bounces later her body comes to a stop.
Videl's whole body shakes as she struggles to get to her feet. "Don't you dare help me!" She blurts to Cui.
"You really think that was even remotely on my mind?" the fish-man spits on the ground in disgust.
The three Namekians walk up to her in a triangle. "Let's end this now kid, before you get killed."
Sensing her disadvantage, Videl employs a taboo strategy. "Yeah, okay. I surrender." She raises her hands above her head.
The Namekians are perplexed. "...Well, stay where you are. We're going to bind you."
They move in to arrest her, relieved that the fighting has ended. Though to their surprise and horror, a trap is sprung.
"Honorable Satan False Surrender Counter Surprise Ambush!" Videl blows them all away. Though she laughs, her body trembles in pain.
"Honorable my ass!"
Three consecutive energy bolts shoot through the wall of dust. They strike her body on three different sides and burst simultaneously. When the explosion clears Videl collapses. She flinches on the ground in a broken state.
"Only a bastard uses a trick like that!"
Videl musters weak words as her body shuts down. "How dare you ...call it a trick."
"Ahem." Cui finally addresses them. "As much as I love watching that snot nosed brat get beaten to a pulp, I do have a busy schedule to keep."
With three quick palm shots the warriors are blasted to smithereens. Their cries of agony echo across the grassland. Cui leaps into the village, landing right next to Moori. Several frightened villagers scatter into their homes.
"Let's continue from earlier. I believe you were saying 'Lord Cui, I humbly gift you this dragon ball, may I kiss your feet to show you my gratitude!' Something along those lines I believe."
Moori frustratedly looks back at where his men had fallen. "Tch! You're a fiend is what you are!"
Cui grasps Moori's jaw. "Let me make myself more clear. If you don't have that dragon ball in my hand in thirty seconds then I kill everyone in this village."
"You tell him Lieutenant Cui!" The lone slug-jin chants from afar.
Moori gulps. "Let me go look for it, I haven't seen it in a while, could have lost it."
Outside the village, two Namekian children, one smaller than the other, nervously approach the site of Videl's battle with the warriors. The older of the two speaks first. "Cargo, we should go back. It's dangerous out here." the slug-jin continue to moan about on the ground.
The other child stops several meters from Videl. He notices her chest rise and fall. "Look Dende, they're alive!" He points to the girl.
"We should leave it be, that one was strong enough to give the guards trouble. What if it attacks us?"
Back in the village, Moori emerges from a building.
"Ah… finally. I was beginning to become inpatient." Cui holds his hand out.
Moori nervously approaches. "Here. our dragon ball." Moori places a regular orange bead in Cui's hands.
"Huh? I thought it would be bigger… wait a minute…" Cui twirls his tentacle mustache as he examines the orb.
Moori begins to sweat profusely.
"Hmmmmmmmmmm... I want to say something's off, but I just thought it would feel a little more magical."
"Oh don't you worry, it will start to feel magical once you leave the planet and never return!"
"Very well. For your cooperation I will spare your life."
"Lieutenant Cui! I have recovered the dragon ball!" the remaining slug-jin leaps into the street. The large shiny translucent ball with suspended stars within it rests within his hands.
"Curses! How did he get a hold of that!" Moori's facade breaks.
Cui eyes the dragon ball with confusion. He glances at the ball in his hand and back at the one in his soldier's several times before coming to the full realization.
"So you've taken me for a fool have you?" Cui gazes with irritation back at Moori. "Did I say I was sparing your life? Let me take that back. I'm going to reduce you and this entire community to ashes!"
Cui leaps into the sky and hovers. He unleashes a flurry of blasts that tear apart the village.
"Lieutenant Cui! We've got a report from command! Commander Wings has already obtained his second dragon ball!"
"Blast it!" Cui ceases his barrage. "Everyone get up already! We're moving out, top speed!"
"Sir!" The troops cease their groaning and bolt off of the ground as if they had recovered from their injuries long ago.
Videl lays curled up on her side. With the last of her consciousness she reaches out after Cui. Don't leave me! she tries to say, but only gasps of air make it out of her mouth.
Just as she passes out, Cargo wraps her in a cloth and slings her over his back.
The unit shoots off into the horizon. The coughing of survivors fills the air.
"Elder Moori!" Dende rushes to the elder's side.
"Ha." The elder manages a faint smile. "Dende, you're unharmed. I'm grateful. It is no longer safe here, I cannot protect you as I am."
Dende gasps, realizing the seriousness of Moori's wounds. "Elder Moori!"
"Don't you worry about me. I'll pull through."
"Dende!" Cargo calls out to his brother.
"Cargo?" Dende turns his head to face him. He notices the sleeping head of the girl poking over his shoulder. "You brought it with you?"
"They abandoned them, and they're hurt real bad. What else could I do?"
"You have a kind heart, Cargo." Moori weakly mutters with coughs in between. "Go, both of you. Seek refuge with the Grand Elder. That is the safest place for you now."
Dende and Cargo nod worriedly. The two brothers take off from the village with great haste.