The Dragon Team approached Babidi's ship, and as they got closer to the door, it opened with a whir, proving it was automatic. Stepping over the threshold of the subterranean spaceship, the group found themselves face to face with a large, open circle, revealing a large tunnel that simply led straight down.

"I guess we're being welcomed in." Tenshinhan noted, looking down into the metal tunnel. "Not that I'm surprised."

"I've never been one to refuse an invitation," said Piccolo. "And this seems to be the only way down." Seeing no other recourse, Piccolo was the first to leap down, and began the descent into the long tube.

"Seems we don't have much of a choice," Gohan shrugged, and followed his teacher. Erasa and the rest of the group was quick to follow him, descending single-file down the tunnel.

As the heroes infiltrated the ship, deep beneath the surface of the planet, at the very bottom of the ship, lurked the aforementioned mage himself. Standing next to the imposing figure of Dābura. Resting before Babidi on a pedestal was a large crystal ball, and inside the crystalline orb, the figures of Gohan and the others could be seen descending through the tunnel that led into Babidi's ship.

"They're fools, the lot of them!" The mage crowed in excitement as he saw the infiltration of his ship underway. "They're practically gift wrapping their energy for me, entering the ship like this. It's as if Koludadu has come early!"

"Indeed, Master," replied Dābura, ever the 'yes man'. "Truly, Majin Bū has been presented with the most fortune offering."

"Hmm...what's this?" Babidi's large eyes squinted as he scrutinized the crystal ball. While his attention had been on the group of eight invading his ship, the Crystal Ball diverted his attention to something new. A girl with black hair and a determined expression had jumped in after the other Earthlings and the Kaiōshin. "Well now... a fresh arrival! It appears the Earthlings were followed by another one."

"Shall I go kill her?" offered Dābura dutifully.

"No, don't bother." Babidi waved the offer off. "Another rat scurrying about the ship merely means more energy for Majin Bū. I tell you, Dābura, we'll see this goal fulfilled today!" The mage cackled madly, his eyes gleaming. "Now, it would appear our guests have reached Level One. Dābura, we're terrible hosts; we haven't even sent anyone to get their coats!"

"Then who do you suggest, Master?" Dābura inquired.

After a moment of consideration, in which the mage mulled over his options, a sinister sneer crossed his face, revealing yellowing teeth. "Send Dol to Level One!"

Landing neatly onto the floor below them, the group looked around the ship with awe. The entire room was blank, but spacious — almost as if it had been designed for fighting. There was nothing in the way of décor, at least not from what the group could see; a plain, empty area, with with plenty of leg room.

Goku was grinning in spite of himself. "This feels a lot like they're welcomin' a challenge, doesn't it?" His question earned a nod of assent from his son and Vegeta, both of whom had concluded the same thing the moment they'd landed in this room. Babidi, at some point, might have been either expecting, or even hoping, for invaders. Though the group he had lured in this time weren't your everyday intruders.

"So this is the inside of the ship," 18 observed. "I would have assumed any self-respecting person would have had their forces ready to attack us the moment we entered the ship. It's your energy they want, isn't it? I highly doubt we need to be in one piece for them to get it."

"I'm rather grateful for the moment to breathe, actually," replied Erasa, who had been assuming something along similar lines, but this was one of the few times in her life she'd been happy to be wrong.

"It would appear that accursed mage is plotting something nefarious," Shin supplied. "We should simply remain on our guard; an enemy should be coming to face us soon."

There was a brief thump behind them that caught the attention of everyone in the room. The group rounded on the new arrival, expecting to be confronted by their first enemy...only to instead be met with the familiar to some, and very angry, face of Videl.

"What in the...?" Erasa was the first to speak up, her blue eyes widening at the sight of her friend.

"Isn't that...the girl from the first round of the Tenkaichi Budōkai?" Goku looked at their new arrival curiously. She was the one he'd gone to Karin's to retrieve the Senzu that currently rested in a satchel tied to his sash.

Videl's eye twitched. So this was Son Goku.

"Videl, why are you here?" Gohan asked, looking just as confused as everyone else. "Do you have any idea what you just jumped into?"

"Just shut up, Gohan," replied Videl icily. Her eyes, twitching still from Goku's remarks, glanced from Gohan to Erasa to Goku and back to Gohan, ignoring the rest of the group. "I'll admit, I was curious, so I followed your little party, and I stumbled upon this." She shrugged casually, though whether she was simply being blasé as a front or was legitimately unconcerned wasn't clear. "When I saw you all rushing into this weird building, I knew I had to follow." Looking around at the room, she was a bit surprised. "It's a lot bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside."

"This isn't a game, Videl," Erasa stressed before Gohan could say anything. A bead of sweat slipped down her forehead, a sign of rising anxiety. "This is serious, and you could die. Please, leave, before—!"

There was a whirring sound that cut off Erasa, and the group looked up to see the tunnel they'd come through closing itself off, as the last entrant had made her way through. With a smirk, Videl said, "It looks like I'm staying after all. Nowhere to go, from the looks of it."

Erasa looked positively furious, grinding her teeth as she marched away from Videl. Piccolo cast an eye towards the black-tressed girl, his dark eyes narrowing suspiciously. "That girl...for all her talent, she can hardly contain her emotions. This truly isnot the place for her."

"We come here expecting a fight, and we're treated to an Earthling drama," Vegeta spat in irritation. "Babidi had better hurry up!"

"So why don't you tell me exactly what I did sign up for, Gohan?" Videl walked casually over to the half-Saiyan, her pigtails bobbing at her sides.

With a resigned exhale, Gohan quickly filled Videl in on everything that he himself knew — up to and including the mentions of Babidi, his magic, and the evil Majin Bū. Her expressions quickly changed from irritation, to placid curiosity, and then to disbelief and confusion. Everything Gohan was saying seemed to be fantastical and terrifying, but having begun to delve into ki and the mystical side of martial arts, she wasn't going to doubt what he said simply because she had no proof.

"An evil mage that controls those with evil in their hearts...and a djinn from before time?" Videl's face worked in confusion as she tried to wrap her mind around it all. It sounded more like a bad fantasy book than anything substantial, but here she was.

There was a woosh that caught the attention of the group; the door too the furthest side of the room, emblazoned with the familiar 'M', began to rise automatically. Out of the door stepped a peculiar creature — most likely alien — that no one recognized. It possessed pale skin, and wore what appeared to be dark brown armor. Donned over it's face was a similar coloured mask, which had a long nose and white fangs.

"What...is that?" Videl was the first to speak this time, her voice breathy with shock and her eyes equally wide. "Some kind of monster!?"

"Alien," Erasa replied gruffly. "Extraterrestrial, you name it, they exist."

"Is he an alien too?" Videl gestured broadly to Piccolo; the Namekian cast the girl a rather irritated look at her lack of any delicacy.

"Yes, Piccolo is an alien," Erasa explained, having learned all of this from Gohan. "In fact, so are Goku and Vegeta."

"Aliens, aliens," Videl held a hand up to her forehead, feeling slightly lightheaded. "But if Goku is an alien...then Gohan is too!? I knew something was off about him!"

The 'alien' cleared its throat pointedly, and when it spoke, the voice had a calm, almost wispy feel to it. It carried like a cool breeze, and if nothing else, commanded the attention of the others due to sheer curiousity that it was speaking. "Welcome, intruders, to the ship of Master Babidi. The prestigious wizard extends his regards."

"Are you Babidi's fighter?" Vegeta queried, grinning in spite of himself. "I was expecting a challenge, and we're presented with a weakling! Your boss should learn it's rude to keep his guests waiting for the main event!"

"For you, this is the main event," replied the alien coolly. "My name is Dol, and we're currently standing on the first floor of Babidi's ship, also known as Level One. This ship is broken into a multitude of five levels; progress through four and you'll meet my Master, waiting for you at the bottom of this ship."

"So it's a lot like a video game..." Erasa noted, wondering what would possess Babidi to create such a strangely thematic ship. "Defeat the boss on one floor and the next level opens up. I've played a few like that, though I never expected I'd be doing it for real!"

"All of you are to become the energy that will feed the great Majin Bū!" Dol spread its arms wide. "So now, which one of you will face me first? Or would you prefer to come at me all at once?"

"What do you suggest, Goku?" Shin inquired, looking at the dead Saiyan. "It is by belief, after the encounter with Dābura, that fighting in a group might be in our best interests." The advice was offered as a helpful suggest; the Kaiōshin stating his opinion out of the best interest for the group.

"How about letting me give it a go?" Erasa volunteered, stepping forward.

Gohan immediately had an averse reaction to Erasa being the first to volunteer to fight their new arrival. They knew next to nothing about his abilities, and he was beginning to think he should volunteer to fight in her stead. "Erasa, are you sure about this? There's plenty of us who could also volunte-"

"You're a broken record, Gohan," Erasa sighed, smiling at his effort to try and keep her safe. "I didn't come to this ship to do nothing, Gohan!" Looking behind her, the girl flashed her smile towards him. "Besides, I've got a good sense for this guy's ki; he's not anywhere near as strong as the rest of you guys. In fact, I'd hazard a guess to say I'm probably the closest to his level right now. After Dābura, I expected some really strong opponents, so I'm not sure what Babidi was thinking."

"You've got a lot of spunk, kid," Tenshinhan beamed at Erasa. "Ease up, Gohan. She's right; there isn't much to our new opponent's ki that I don't think Erasa can handle."

Furrowing his brow, Gohan nodded, relenting. "I can't shake a feeling...there's more to this guy than just his ki." The half-Saiyan thought to himself, a strange sensation of dread flickering down his spine. "Erasa..."

The blonde-tressed girl stepped forward, performing a few quick stretches to ready her body for the ensuing battle. She looked at her opponent with a hardened expression. "That mask is more disturbing than I like. I can't read his expressions or anything — I don't even know if this is a he! He's actually creeping me out!"

"So you're my opponent, then?" Dol questioned, its wispy voice rushing out from behind the demonic mask it wore. "It seems Earthlings are nothing without a sense of comedy; regardless, I will face anyone who stands in the way of Master Babidi. Let me introduce myself again; I am Dol, one of Babidi's elite soldiers!"

"And I'm Erasa," replied the high-school girl, bending at the knee as she spread her legs apart into a stance; she raised her left arm up in front of her body, allowing her right to rest at her side. What she had said wasn't a lie; in fact, from what she could tell, her opponent's ki was weaker than her's. This was her chance — maybe her only chance — to do something useful for everyone. She couldn't hope to fight on even ground with Dābura.

The two leapt from the floor of the ship's first Level with great speed, and, to no surprise, met in the center of the room; Erasa's knee was clashing against the wrist of the mysterious fighter. Splitting apart, the two began a furious exchange of blows, trading punches and kicks with each other in an effort to gain the advantage. Erasa deftly dodged an incoming blow, pushing the kick from Dol aside with a palm, before slamming her free palm into its masked chin, causing it to stagger back.

Dol struck back, however, extending a clawed hand towards Erasa. With elegance, Erasa wound to the side, ducking to the ground and performing a sweep kick that upset Dol's footing, sending it falling onto it's back.

"He's...kinda weak," Goku noted, his eyes wide with both shock and disappointment. The battle that the group was watching was slow to them; Erasa and Dol were hardly pushing speeds that forced the superior fighters to have to stretch their senses.

"Why would Babidi send someone of his power to confront us?" Tenshinhan eyed Dol shrewdly. "Surely that Dābura told him about us; is Babidi simply underestimating us?"

"I don't think that's it," Piccolo grunted. "If Babidi knowingly sent a fighter this frail to fight us, then he might have some kind of unique ability that makes up for his lack of power."

Gohan furrowed his brow. "I was thinking the same thing, Piccolo. The problem is...if we don't know what this 'Dol' has up his sleeve...we can't warn Erasa at all!"

With quick footwork, Erasa was moving around Dol's strikes like a dancer, making ample use of her ability to feel his ki first and foremost; her eyes in battle were the supplementary sense, as they could be deceived far more easily. Ki rarely lied. As Dol lunged forward with a punch, Erasa slipped to the side, and spun, landing a kick to his back and sending him staggering forward.

"This is easy!" She thought, grinning in spite of herself. "I thought he'd be a littletougher than that at least. His movements are sloppy, and he's almost amateurish." Remembering that she'd only picked up formal training again six months ago, Erasa chuckled sheepishly. "I guess I can't judge, can I?"

Stonily, Videl was watching the grace her best friend was fighting the 'monster'. She didn't want to believe that this was the Erasa she'd been friends with for so long — the spacey girl she'd always had to look after, the best friend who relied on her. "Just...just how much have you matured, Erasa?" The ebony-tressed girl thought. "How much further away from me will you get with him?"

Dol got back to its feet, soft, misty breath coming from inside the mask, truly chilling. Limply, it stood up straight, looking almost none the worse for wear. Despite the fact that Erasa obviously held the advantage, Dol hardly seemed perturbed, a fact helped by the expressionless mask that covered its face. Bending at the knee, Dol broke into a fighting stance, obviously ready to resume.

"I think, if I try, I can end it in one fell swoop," Erasa thought to herself, her blue eyes glistening. With her arms clenched at her side, the girl began to focus her ki. While simple blasts were easy to release, larger scale Kikōha required her to focus her ki for the best results. A light white aura with blue highlights began to envelop her body, flickering like flame.

"Is she...?" Videl watched Erasa power up in awe. She couldn't sense ki, and so perhaps it was her connection with Erasa that was allowing Videl to feel the girl's power creep ever higher.

"She's preparing a large blast," Gohan supplied helpfully. "You might want to brace yourself."

"And what about the rest of you?" asked Videl, suddenly snappish at the thought that Erasa's power should put her on guard.

Goku chuckled. "We'll be fine, we've seen much worse than this."

With only grunts escaping her lips, Erasa felt her ki nearing its peak. Her body was luminous now, emitting a bright, yet contained light; the aura of an inexperienced ki user. Regardless of skill, she could feel her body brimming with power, ki coursing through her body like blood through veins. "Alright...let's—!"

The blonde girl's sentence however, was cut short as she felt her body pierced through the chest. Slick and cold, and thin like a blade, two insertions made their way into her chest and out through her back. She felt blood trickle down her lip, and her vision caught up with the rest of her brain; Dol was standing in front of her, having taking advantage of the girl's lowered guard, running her through with two long claws.

"Erasa!" A shout came from Gohan, unnaturally loud and shrill, almost as if something had possessed the half-Saiyan. He made a movement towards Dol but was stopped by an extended arm. the arm belonged to Piccolo, and the Namekian shot Gohan a stern look.

"Calm down, Gohan," He urged. "A teacher should have more composure than that. Think with your senses, not your eyes, I taught you that before, didn't I? Critical though it looks, her ki hasn't wavered. If you run in to help her at every turn, do you expect her to learn anything?"

Regretfully, Gohan had to agree that Piccolo was right. In his own experience, learning through the body was always best; it was how Piccolo trained him, and how he tried to train Erasa. But this was different from his relationship with Piccolo, and his teacher couldn't understand that. "How am I supposed to look away when she gets hurt!? Damn it!"

As Dol ripped its elongated claws from Erasa's chest, the girl felt herself buckle. Clutching at the fresh wound, she tried to assess her situation. "I'm not a medic, but I don't think this is lethal...he missed my vital organs." Wiping the blood from her chin, Erasa brought herself to her feet. "I can still fight! I'm not done yet, this wound is nothing!"

"You're certainly persistent, little one," Dol replied with amusement. Yet, when it spoke this time, Erasa, nay, the room at large, could hear a difference. The voice beneath the mask, before so soft and mystical, betraying no gender, sounded decidedly like that of a grown woman. "I'm quite surprised, to be honest, at how far you've come. Your abilities are astounding, Erasa."

"Wha-What do you mean?" Erasa blinked rapidly, Dol's mysterious speech distracting her from her recent wound. "You're talking like you know me. I've never met you before. I think I'd remember such an unsightly get up as that."

"Don't you, now?" Dol replied, its voice turning sickeningly sweet, but still deceptively feminine. A hand, now remarkably thin and devoid of claws, reached for the mask on its face. There was a click, and a rush of air, as the creature removed the facial covering. Letting its arm fall to its side, the face underneath the mask was revealed to be that of a woman with pale blue eyes, fair skin, and blonde tresses that fell down to shoulder length. Her face had a tender, caring smile, and yet emblazoned on her forehead was the familiar 'M' worn by Babidi's subordinates.

"Hello, Erasa."

At the sight of this face, Erasa's blood chilled her to the core. Rooted to the spot in disbelief, her lips moved before her mind could process what she was saying.

"M-Mom...?"

A/N: So, as much as I hate to say it, this chapter came later than I wanted. About nine days later than I wanted it to, in fact. I really was hoping I could get this chapter out by Christmas. But, first off, how many of my readers work in retail? Any of you? December is the worst fucking month to work in retail, I swear. My store was so busy, when I got home, all I wanted to do was rest and relax, and on my days off, I more or less was like "screw all of this, I want my me time". Then Christmas came along, and I got the perfect stress reliever in the form of Sword Art Online: Lost Song. Ever since Christmas, I've been venting my frustration by living more or less in Alfheim, and that is the kind of game where you think you'll be there for a half hour more and are awake until 4 AM instead.

So, because this month has just been terrible, both this chapter, and the upcoming Heart of Adventurers chapter had been delayed, as both were meant to come out this month. Regardless, the chapter is now complete, and I have to apologize for the length. It was going to be longer, but after weighing the events of the chapter coming up with this one, I decided to shorten this chapter, so I could contain the events properly.

I do hope you guys like it. The reason I left Pocus (Pui Pui) to Level Two and not Level One is that the ship has four levels anyway and I kind of wanna show Erasa doing something productive. This is the one time I won't explain the pun behind the name, not until the next chapter, since Dol is, well, still around, and my pun's typically have some kind of meaning. I cannot stress how much I hope you guys like this chapter, I've been waiting to do it for a long time. It took me awhile to figure out how to make Erasa useful in the ship, and I figured giving her a fight scene, especially one with this kind of weight, was the way to go.

So, I apologize for the wait, the entire month of December is finally behind me so I can relax and write as I want to now. Also, once again, let's give a huge thanks to my friend, Demod20, for proofreading these before I post them to ensure they're reading fit!