The Long Road

by Drakthul

AU: Abducted at the age of three and a half, taken through thirteen years of bloodshed and strife, Gohan finds his way back to Earth... to finish a backlogged contract. On Earth, he will either overcome what he is, or be destroyed by it. Rated M.

67. Chapter 67: Aw Hell

Disclaimer, in case it wasn't obvious. I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, or really any other property. Thank you.

The Long Road

Chapter 67: Aw Hell

Whis:

Oh dear.

Looking up at the sky hanging above his head, Whis sensed what had befallen the Supreme Kai of Time. The Earth had become a home to a destructive force which was rending through time and space. It was annoying that Lord Beerus himself was asleep, as per usual. Worse yet, he sensed the Supreme Kai and Diaokaio on the surface of that planet, perhaps pitched in a battle against this malignant force. It was very troubling in that respect, because if they were irresponsible enough they would get themselves killed, which would lead to another tragedy in that Lord Beerus would too expire. Not that Lord Beerus expiring would be the end of the universe, mind you, but it would be highly inconvenient. Almost as inconvenient as having to wake him up, early no less.

With a long sigh, Whis held his head high before walking towards the entrance to Lord Beerus's most humble of sleeping arrangements. Looking over the mess he'd allowed the area to become over the last few months, Beerus cleared his throat very loudly. The alarms floating about the massive chamber were set for fifty years, and the sand trailing down in these massive hour glasses were very much full, in favour of sleeping. Not a peep came back from the bed hovering in the midst of this fantastical world.

"Lord Beerus, there are urgent matters which require your attention," Whis commented loudly. "I am afraid that means we'll be needing to cut your nap short."

The distinct lack of a response just left him breathing in and out in another sigh. Every time he needed to be so dramatic, didn't he?

"Lord Beerus, I know you can hear me!" he called out. "Do we really need to do this, again?"

"Go away," murmured from his bed oh so high above.

"You know I'd only wake you if it was very important Lord Beerus, now it's time to get up," Whis ordered.

There was a pause which seemed to permeate the air around him as Whis cleared his throat again. Of course he was opting to sleep further, which meant that Whis himself would have to escalate. Pushing things this far was always a last resort. It was entirely his responsibility to make sure this happened, no matter the consequences.

"Lord Beerus, if you don't wake up, I will be forced to do something drastic," Whis advised and warned, steeling his gaze upon the bed above.

Still no response.

Oh dear. I wish I could say this was highly unusual. But I must wake Lord Beerus, no matter the cost.

Hovering into the air, he ascended past the floating alarms which littered the air around Lord Beerus. Sprawled out on his bed, the cat-like God of Destruction was resting peacefully, his chest rising and falling as he rested peacefully. It was a genuine shame that he needed to be awakened this early into his slumber, but with the destruction of the Supreme Kai of Time? This couldn't be ignored, especially with the beacon of energy that was pulsing out on the surface of the planet.

Here goes.

A large pot appeared in his hands, before it filled with water. The swish of the liquid within cooled for a brief moment as icecubes appeared magically into it as well. A weapon far more dangerous than any device divined by most creatures across the universe lay in his hands. And he had the will to use it. Hoisting the large pot into the air, he tipped it forward as the water flowed like a small river. It spilled onto the bed a moment later, passing directly through the sheets which protected Lord Beerus in his slumber. The chaos of the attack was evident as the hostile liquid doused the entire bed, soaking it within and without in the briefest of moments. The damage was done however, the second the water made contact. A shrill scream escaped Lord Beerus as he hopped out of the bed startled, slipping he was so surprised. His foot swept up as he fell back from his perch, falling dozens of metres before colliding with another floating rock below.

"WHIS!"

I knew this would get his attention.

Whis smiled uncomfortably as he slipped from the side of the rock, hovering in the air and clearing his throat as his staff reappeared in his hand. Talking to him in this state was frustrating at times, but it was necessary for him to perform his role as the God of Destruction at this time.

"Yes, Lord Beerus?"

The simple answer let to the furious wet feline barking angrily, which was an irony not lost on Whis, as the God of Destruction spat a venomously a moment later.

"I started my slumber only a few weeks ago, and you dare wake me up in the middle of my sleep!? And you doused me with water! WATER! I'll destroy you for that Whis! Do you hear me?!"

"Speaking of water, I suspect you'll be needing a bath before we get to pressing business, so we will need to be quick, Lord Beerus."

Snarling below, Beerus just glared back at him.

"And what if I refuse to play along? I can simply go back to bed anytime I like, Whis."

"You're just being cranky, Lord Beerus. Besides, if you go back to sleep now, you may die in your slumber. If I'm not mistake both Shin and Abaddon, the Supreme Kai, and the Grand Supreme Kai, are locked in mortal combat and could be killed very soon."

The fury and outrage Beerus had displayed only seconds later disappeared at a faster rate than when Beerus jumped out of his bed. Sweat mixed with the cold water on his body as Beerus nervously began grooming his right paw.

"Then we'll need to be going. I'd rather not die today, Whis."

"Of course Lord Beerus. Though I won't be taking you anywhere until we get that stink off of you. You have the worst stench every time you wake up. It's like you drown yourself in a mixture of your own personal musk and sweat," Whis remarked, plugging his nose with his free hand.

"Well then let's hurry up with that. I'd rather not die in the bath," Beerus commented. "But you will make sure we have my favourite bubble bath. I hate the off-brand. It makes underneath my claws itch, and my skin always feels clammy after it."

"I would never subject you to the off-branded bubbles again, Lord Beerus! Especially after last time, you destroyed four solar systems you were so angry. And then you imprisoned one of the Supreme Kai's into a sword. I've learned my lesson very well, thank you very much."

When Whis's feet touched the ground, he simply smiled at his counterpart before casually walking towards the exit.

"If we're lucky, maybe this threat will kill Abaddon before we get there. I'd rather not save that bastard anyway," Beerus yawned almost painfully before growling. "They just had to wake me up. After we save those two, I should just destroy the whole planet."

"Well, you are the God of Destruction, Lord Beerus. How you choose to handle the situation is up to you!"

"... Wait!..." Beerus gasped, looking ahead as if his heart stopped.

Immediately, Whis searched for the energies of the Kais, finding both in place, it was curious then that Beerus looked as though he was having a heart attack.

"I almost forgot to grab Bactora," Beerus remarked. "Even in a hurry, I could never have a bath without my rubber ducky."

Smiling pleasantly, Whis nodded.

"Do hurry though Lord Beerus. The fate of the universe does hang in the balance after all."

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Vegito:

Two minds merging into one being. This is crazy. I'm the greatest.

Skipping over the ground for several seconds, Vegito cracked his neck from side to side whilst stretching. Existence was crazy, just being what he was. Of course he couldn't get too deep into what he was thinking right now, because after all he did need to save the world from this aristocratic reject. The sword and cape really just made the whole look not work. Who was he trying to be? A Saiyan Frieza? Well, he was actually probably worse than that, Frieza didn't seem this unhinged. Oh well. This guy's power level was very real to him, and he could sense just how deep it went. Of course, he wasn't going to get a pass by any means just for being strong. His unions were brought about by stealing the energies and lives of other people. His own power was a union of two willing participants. Hell, he felt ten times stronger than Vegeta or Goku for that matter. No need to get cocky though, this was far from over.

"You're always so rude, the worst of Vegeta and Kakarot's properties. You have the unsightly aggression of Vegeta, mixed with the lacking of manners of Kakarot. Striking me while I had my back turned..." Taro commented, before smirking back at him arrogantly. "Super Vegito. I promise you, you'll not lay another hand on me this fight."

Windows of opportunity whistled past Vegito was he examined body language and ki that was surrounding them. Taro was underestimating him, and Vegito was absolutely fine with that. Golden energy flowed upward as he continued to skip about, his golden hair flowing up as well. Super Saiyan I was good enough for now. Stopping where he stood, he jabbed into the air several times, each shot pointed at Taro despite the distance between them.

"Still getting used to this body, I've gotta admit," Vegito conceded to Taro, before lowering his own guard and tilting his head forward. "But I think you're in way over your head if you think you're going to dodge me for that long."

Closing his eyes slowly, Taro just breathed in once before starting to laugh. The cackle he let loose was unsettling for only the briefest of seconds. Was this guy really that arrogant? Or was he that strong?

"I've killed you a dozen times, even in this state you realize? Do you not understand that you are facing your maker. I made you. I know everything about you, Vegito," he chuckled. "Once I am whole again, reality itself will once again be putty in my fingers... and the next time I remake the universe, I'll be sure that you are in it... because I-"

When his eyes opened, Taro's featured were shocked as the gloved fist of Vegito slammed into his gut. He gasped and made a gurgling noise in the same moment as the fist buried itself into his gut. Before he could respond further, the Super Saiyan Fusion slammed his other fist into his abdomen, before furiously dropping another dozen blows into his stomach. Each hit sent Taro sliding back across the forest floor, ripping up the ground beneath him. As the last punch landed, Vegito picked up into the air before spinning, swinging his leg out and cracking his leg across Taro's face. Spit shot into the air as his surprised 'maker' was sent tumbling back, slamming into the rubble of an already fallen peak. Smoke immediately rolled out before the sounds of massive boulders falling into place rumbled across the landscape.

Landing on his feet, Vegito just brushed his shoulders off of the excess dust which had accumulated on his shoulders.

"Well, so much for not laying a hand on him," Vegito chuckled. "I was generous enough to even lay a foot on him too. Lucky guy."

The ground all around him began to rumble as the earth began to split open. Ki rushed forth like a river as something akin to an outraged scream exploded from the ground beyond. The air around him swept up violently as he sensed motion and ki travelling at incredible speeds. As if on cue though, he predicted where the attack would come, snapping his elbow back and sliding his mass into it, it imbedded itself in Taro's chest. A surprised, gasping monster was left there for less than a blink, before he snarled, striking back with a vicious palm strike. Spiralling out of the way, Vegeta almost rolled behind him before kicking straight up. His leg shot between the other Saiyan's legs before he could turn, before the two of his foot made contact with the Saiyan's groin. The blow seemed to freeze the combat as he heard his enemy gape without seemingly the ability to breathe. Stepping forward as soon as his leg came back, his hand struck true once more, slamming into the back of Taro's head, sending him tumbling forward on a roll. His cape fluttered behind him before he ended up skidding face first in the first several metres.

"Sorry about that one, I just wanted to make sure you couldn't really play the role of maker anymore. I figured you 'd be needing those."

The form was still for several seconds. Rising to his hands and knees, Taro coughed several times before turning his head, smiling back dangerously to him.

"Well, you're definitely stronger than a few other Vegito's I've fought. This world has been surprising," he admitted to him, brushing a bit of blood from his lip. "And I know you're holding back the lion's share of your power still. Do you realize what you've done?"

What I've done?

"Well? Do you?" Taro questioned him again, finally making it to his feet entirely, his gaze turning cold and dead.

"I'm pretty sure I punched you a bunch, kicked you in the head, and the balls, and I'm pretty sure I also may have made you eat a bit of dirt just now," Vegito mocked. "I'm also pretty sure now you're going to give me the line about how you're not going to let that happen again, and how great you really-"

"No, Vegito. You have managed in your infinite ignorance, to put me through the greatest pain. My power lay in unifying my fragments. That unity is brought about by suffering," he explained. "Part of me suffers every time I begin to display my true power. It is a mercy of me to never really take a battle seriously. Because the more power I draw... the more loudly I am forced to make the choir sing."

Something lay at the pit of Vegito's stomach when Taro started talking. The part of him that was Vegeta was outraged, because he knew exactly what this monster meant when he said that. All those souls were still trapped inside of Taro himself, all of them dead, but unable to pass on or leave his clutches. The reason his power raged like a howl of agony was because it was a howl of agony. Supposedly it was his charity that he didn't take fights more seriously. Well how kind of him.

"You're sick," Vegito remarked simply. "You torment Trunks for your power? It shows how pathetic you are. You aren't even able to muster enough strength to fight anyone by yourself."

"As simple as always. Vegeta... Kakarot... When I designed you and your race-"

"You're a Saiyan too," Vegito was quick to quip.

"I choose to present myself in this form. I chose this as my avatar when I brought myself into existence, in every reality of my birth."

Well, this guy's completely crazy. Great. That's just swell.

"Uhhhhhh... I don't think that's how that works..."

An irritated look crossed his counterpart as power started to swirl at his feet. A flash of light blasted out for only a second, before his black aura appeared. And it screamed. It wasn't just a noise it was making, it felt like it was brushing past his very soul. It was a whirlwind of agony and despair, and Vegito felt it all the more when he recognized each individual scream inside the storm. It was Trunks. It was Trunks as a man, Trunks as a child, and Trunks as a teenager, layered over hundreds if not thousands of times into the horrific noise that was being generated in that second. Then the force wave rolled out from him as his ki expanded. It did more than just expand, it exploded.

It was like feeling a wave crash over him before the fight had even truly begun. The tide rose around him as swirls of dark energy emerged all around them. Trees were torn apart before the wave struck them, blasting them back into uprooted, burnt, withered sticks. When his feet hit the dirt once again, his feet started to shred through the ground, leaving a pair of tracks in front of him as he was driven back. Rocks and other debris started to become cast into the air and to defend himself from the scattered bits of the world around him, Vegito raised his guard. Pebbles, dirt, and foliage bounced off his arms.

When the expansion finally faded, Vegito looked forward, his blue-green eyes looking towards the centre of this destructive wave. The soft scream in all the ki around him rang in his mind while he stared at this thing in front of him. The depth of the ocean that was the screams, that was the pure power resonating around him, made fusion briefly ponder just what he was fighting. When Taro claimed to be the creator of all the universe and time it almost... almost made sense. Except for the fact that he knew that his own power wasn't so far off, not if he pushed things far enough.

Except that I don't even know if this is him taking this seriously yet or not.

The black aura around him made his long hair flow past him as Taro simply stretched briefly, making sure his arms were worked out before he started his assault.

"Have you not ever wondered why the Gods themselves were so inadequate? Why they are so flawed? So weak? They are such because they are flawed interpretations of my vision," Taro commented simply. "But I know I won't convince you, nor do I need to. I am Taro... I am Trunks."

It was almost like before, when he'd been Kakarot. The frame of his adversary was the only thing he could even remotely follow. The sound of his aura's screams reverberated through him as he closed in on him. Concentrating on the space where Taro had started his movement, Vegito instant transmissioned into where Taro had just stood. By the time he arrived, he looked for the motion of what had just attacked him. Instead, it was empty space.

"Do you really think me so ignorant, Vegito?" Taro asked from before.

Before he could turn to face him, Taro's palm struck his lower back, taking him off his feet immediately. His entire body flipped upside down before Taro kicked him in the gut, sending him flailing through the air before he slammed into the dirt of where he'd been ironically before he transmissioned him.

"Ugh," Vegito groaned. "Well, whatever you are..."

Slowly getting up, Vegito brushed himself off, energy rising even in his current form.

"You're not going to get a win over me easily. Let's see how strong you really are."

Turning around, Vegito's aura burst around him, the familiar sound of his Super Saiyan aura mixing with the screams across from him, almost drowning it out.

There was a dead glare on the other side as he knew Taro weighed his options. Because right now, Vegito knew that Taro had a power advantage... but only just.

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Turles:

"Another one?" King Yemma sighed. "What is going on here? First Cell, now you? How did you even get out?"

Looking down at his body, Turles tried to assess what was even happening. When he'd died, he figured he'd just end up in Hell, again. Instead, he was here... and his body was reconstituted.

"Alright, we're going to really skip reading all the crimes. Turles, you are guilty, may you spend an eternity-"

"Shut up and just do it already!" Turles spat.

The gavel came down, and as soon as it banged on the desk, Turles felt the floor slip away. Into darkness he fell, and into the depths of Hell he was driven. When light came around him again, he was just falling with an orange sky as a backdrop, and a yellow ceiling overhead. The stale air filled his lungs before he fell flat on his back, his 'armour' scraping against the dry, dead 'soil'.

Home sweet home.

Sitting up, he was greeted by a rather green figure in front of him, Cell scowled as he struck the air furiously. Losing was never something to be taken lightly, Turles knew that himself. Rising to his feet, he briefly brushed some grey dirt off his uniform before he crossed his arms, pondering what had just befallen him. Kakarot hadn't gotten himself killed, it was likely the infamous instantaneous transmission which he was utilizing to keep himself alive. Which meant whatever was happening on the surface of the Earth right now, was happening without him.

Turning his glare towards an ogre who swallowed and started backing away from him, Turles approached with a brisk walk.

"Y-you can't attack us anymore! Because if you do-"

"Shut. Up," Turles ordered, his tone cold as he began looking in every direction before settling his gaze back on the orange ogre. "I need you to find someone for me. Now."

"Oh, did someone hurt your feelings, Turles?" Cell's voice cut in from the side. "What's it like to not be the strongest, despite that new form of yours?"

Turles didn't even bother turning to look.

"You're an idiot, Android. Do you not realize what is being wasted on the living world right now? Our chance to escape this place is slipping through our fingers as we speak," Turles sneered openly. "Now is not the time to celebrate that I'm weaker than whatever fought us up there."

Grabbing the troll by the front of his shirt, Turles hoisted the muscular guard into the air.

"I have a series of people to collect..."

"Collect? Well, aren't you special?" Cell laughed. "And what is it you're going to do? Make a prayer circle? We can all get together and hope that those fools on the Earth stop a being with that much power."

It was impossible for Turles to hide his anger. Anger at being humiliated, and anger at being trapped down here, in his home sweet home once again. He was not going to spend his afterlife imprisoned down here like some base creature. To accept being trapped down here for an eternity would be to accept his fate. What this Taro creature had shown him was there were ways to interact with the world beyond, even if he was normally trapped here. Which meant that there were a series of people he needed to find. Now.

"I don't waste my times with hope, or prayers, bugman," Turles remarked coldly. "I put my finger on the scale and influence outcomes to my betterment. And if you'd like not to be trapped down here for all eternity, you should consider following my lead."

Crossing his arms, the android regarded him briefly, seemingly in thought about this as the Ogre in his grip tried to struggle free.

"Struggle anymore, and I'll snap your neck," Turles promised, and it was no idly threat. "I am uninterested in keeping you in this state if you cannot be useful to me."

"And, Saiyan, what was your plan exactly?" Cell asked bluntly.

Even in Hell, they could sense the tide of ki rising on the Earth. To sense it that far away, they could sense two great powers battling back and forth, the darker of the two clearly obtaining the greater strength so far. Putting his finger on the scale was going to be more difficult, being trapped down here. But that meant they needed to find a way to change that, or at least reach out of this miserable cage of a reality.

This was about investment, just as much as it was about salvation. There would be true out from this place without the Earth, that was something he knew to be true as of this exact moment. It meant that he needed to find a way to utilize the resources here into something helpful. It was do or die, because giving some prep talk to Gohan, or anyone else, wasn't going to be enough this time.

"First, we need to find Bardock," Turles remarked. "And then we're going to need to find our dear friend Babidi."

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Taro:

The ground exploded beneath them as a series of strikes passed through the air. The sound of their forms zipping through the air followed by thundering booms rolled out over the mountains themselves. Ancient mountain peaks and spires rumbled and collapsed to their bases as avalanches rolled down, causing mass mudslides. As the earth spat into the air for kilometres below them, impacted hundreds of metres below from the simple act of their blows exchanging in the air, Taro held firm before his arm locked with the Super Saiyan aura across from him. The thundering howl of his aura, and thrum of the Super Saiyan aura across from him left the two locked in a battle of near-equals.

"Have you wondered what will happen when that Fusion of yours expires, Super Vegito?"

It was invigorating to have a clash such as this. Even if he preferred his knowing outcomes from a world, a lack of chaos in all of this, it was sometimes acceptable to have something as refreshing as fighting a being such as this. The most fascinating thing about Vegito was his confidence. The brutish thuggery he presented was also clearly very much like Turles, the treacherous father he'd chosen his original form to have. But Vegeta was very much recognizable as well, considering how many Trunks were born to him as well. Either, his arrogance was almost impossible to vanquish.

"We're not even going to get that far into this," the Fusion taunted him in turn as they hovered over the ruins of the forest around them.

In a fraction of a sliver of time, Taro had already jetted out towards him again, zipping behind him before striking down with his elbow. It was caught by an open palm before he felt himself flipped forward. Flipping several times in the air, the union of the creator of all of time and space, Trunks, halted himself in the air, at no risk of plunging further towards the Earth. This was all happening in the space between a second as he turned to look back up, only to find Vegito's knuckles implanted firmly in the side of his cheek and temple, sending him down further. In the air, he pulled his left forearm up, blocking the next attack.

This one is strangely more powerful than most of the Vegito's I've fought. Well, not entirely. They understand much of my fighting style... interesting.

His other arm shot up, blocking the followup kick before Taro shoved both limbs away, before striking straight for Vegito's body, only to find the other fusion had shoved his hand away with a block, using the momentum from doing so to spin around to his back. Taro felt the elbow slam into the middle of his back as a result, feeling a thick blow go through his insides. It was a matter of pride at this point that Taro overtook this abomination on his own level. Stumbling forward in the air, he felt himself drop out of the hyperspeed they'd just been engaging in.

"So long," Vegito commented. "Big Bang Attack!"

Blue light flared from behind him as Taro's eyes bulged at the realization of what was happening. Immediately his aura wrapped around his body before he disappeared in a blur of raw speed, gaining distance to one side.

If he thinks that he's hitting me with that when I'm this-

The blue light blared out from behind him again however, while he turned his hand to glare directly at Vegito, who was smirking with one hand out, containing the blast, and the other one placing two finger's on his own forehead.

"Yea, I've played this one before. But you've gotta admit, it's a pretty good number," he commented. "Better luck next dimension."

This is embarrassing.

The ball of energy bolted out towards him, as it closed range he heard the resonating noise it made both in this world, and in the ki surrounding him. Throwing his power forward to his hands, Taro intercepted the blast just as it touched his aura. It was then that he felt it immediately reach critical mass. A tidal wave of energy washed over him in a flash of brilliant power and light, sending him helplessly tumbling through the air, his arms scorched from the intensity of the blast before his frame caught itself in the trees below, snapping through branches and sundering itself through the roots which made up the tree floor, before cratering the very ground itself. A nearby stream began feeding into the puddle as Taro lay there, on his back, staring into the very sky itself.

Clearly, I have been far too lenient. It's not just a matter of skill. I will simply have to stoop to this pair's level. I am, after all, going to win this battle.

The cool water slowly started to fill up to half way past his arms. Reaching his hand through the muddied water, Taro's eyes just looked through it briefly before pulling himself up, his cape completely soaked. Reaching up to the pins holding it in place, he undid his cape for the first time in years. His armour felt all the lesser for it as the white fabric which always adorned his frame was cast aside. This was the sign of his shame, really.

That which I have carried into all of my battles is cast aside. How tragic... This world is truly a miserable universe. First, Brass and Junia are done away with. This insect has struck me, repeatedly, and worse my cape is damaged and soiled by mud and water. My tolerance for this has reached its limit. There was a mention of kids gloves at some point before. Well, let's see what happens when my kids gloves begin to be loosened.

Shifting his neck to one side, Taro's critical gaze never left Vegito as he worked a kink out of his neck.

"You know, for someone who claims to be a god-"

"Stronger than a god," he corrected.

"You sure are good at getting your ass kicked, aren't you? All this, you won't touch me, you can't hurt me stuff really gets tiring, doesn't it? I mean, you're really not all that impressive as far as I can tell," Vegito remarked. "Of course, I know you're holding back, but you'd think you'd not make boasts you can't keep."

A fraction of a smile emerged on Taro's lips upon hearing Vegito's damning deposition on his current fighting game.

"Guilty as charged," Taro commented casually, raising his hands. "Clearly I've been underestimating everything about this world. Such hubris has brought down many of your enemies so far. If I am to understand it... all of them, really."

There was a narrowing of Vegito's eyes, but his confident stance and appearance didn't change as Taro started to gradually levitate to eye level with his counterpart. No power increase... just a different way to fight. If he wanted to fight him like a coward, exploiting his instant transmission? Fine... they could both play that way. Placing his hands at his centre, holding them together, Taro felt the air around them seemingly clear as the whirlwind of ki energies around them were swept aside.

"Oh, parlour tricks now? Clearly the founder of the universe-"

Finally, Vegito's features changed to one only beginning to glean and understand his grandeur. The effect was almost as desired as Vegito braced himself for what was to come. Without moving at all, Taro appeared behind Vegito, stepping forward before striking out with his other foot. Vegito disappeared himself, instantly. Above him, he sensed searing hot energies descending from above already as a wave of golden light overtook where he stood.

And in an instant, he was elsewhere.

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Gohan:

I can't even follow them.

Brief flashes of instantaneous movements scattered across the heavens above the mountains in the distance. It was frustrating knowing they none of them could see a damn thing as to what was going on. All he could do was sense the powers out there, and sense what a tiny fraction of a percentage he was of them. It was unbelievable what he was sensing. He was being given a front row seat to viewing the two most powerful beings he could imagine clashing violently across the land in front of him, and all he could do was wonder what his role in all of this could even be.

Rubbing his head still to the side, Goten just grumbled while he stared as well.

"This is totally crazy," he admitted. "How can dad and Vegeta be that strong?"

Yea, I'm wondering that myself...

"Fusion," Piccolo's voice cut in. "It doesn't just combine two powers, it merges them together to create a greater whole. Rivals and people with deeper connections, also tend to create more powerful fusions."

To his right, Piccolo was standing there, a few trees behind him with the two Kais standing at his side. It'd been the Grand Supreme Kai that'd recommended this Fusion technique after all. Such power was dangerous, even in the power of these 'gods'. What kind of creatures could they morph together with those earrings? Either way, they were doing it for their team right now.

"Together their power seems to be almost impossibly strong, and they've not pushed themselves to Super Saiyan II," Gohan observed. "If they ascend past this, I don't even want to think of what kind of power output their going to have."

There was a long silence after he spoke, everyone trying to concentrate on the fight that was unfolding that they couldn't even follow beyond the ki which felt like it was overwhelming their senses. They could be swimming in the energies around them, and they were a fair distance away. Wind blasted over them all as an impact from the battle rolled out over the mountains once again. Gohan's feet dug into the ground as he felt his fists tighten.

It's so weird to feel this helpless. All we can do is just watch here and...

"I've never sensed Taro pushed this far before," Piccolo's voice emerged in the silence. "His power has always remained constrained. He controls it to such a degree that even when he's furious or angry, he doesn't allow more out than he intends. Even when I've seen him fight Vegito before-"

"Before?" Gohan cut in. "Are you inventing stories or something right now, Namek?"

"Let's put it this way Gohan, there is more than a few ways to fuse. I'm the Piccolo you once knew, and a Piccolo from another world, a world where I knew you much better than I know you in this world. It's complicated, and we'll talk about it later, but for now-"

"Another fusion? An alternate reality Piccolo?" Gohan asked, his eyes widening before he turned back to the battle at hand. "No wonder you gave Brass so much trouble."

And if Piccolo merged like this gained so much power that he traded blows with Brass in a serious way, I can't imagine how much power this Fusion gave Vegito. This is totally cr... crazy...

His head was rising into the air as Goku felt something cold run down his spine as he quickly turned to Piccolo again, feeling something uncomfortable twisting in his stomach as he did. He'd always had a gift for math, but suddenly there was apart of the equation that hadn't worked out yet. Taro's aura and appearance when they did briefly spy him, was something to be very concerned about.

"Why hasn't Taro transformed into a Super Saiyan yet? Can he access that power without a transformation? Is that where his power is coming from?" Gohan's question was quick and his tone dead serious.

The tension he felt in the air as Piccolo remained silent for several seconds felt very real as the Namekian developed several beads of sweat in seconds. When he turned back to look at him, Gohan realized the truth without a word needing to be exchanged. The Kais behind the Namek seemed to be immediately filled with despair.

"You Saiyans," the Grand Supreme Kai almost swore. "You Saiyans are the one's responsible for all of this. Look at this creature, this unnatural monster that will try to ruin all of time and space. In the last few moments he killed the God of Time. He's already fragmented the time stream billions of time. All of creation is at risk and it's all... it's all their fault."

Another flash of brilliant light appeared in front of them as Gohan felt the powers ahead of them twist and warp in the following seconds. Something was happening now. Ah hell, he wished he could run away from this right now. Why did this backwater planet never have any peace seemingly? Monsters appeared out of the material universe as if they were attracted here like a moth to a flame. So far, he'd mainly been doing battle with his own people. Turles and Broly immediately came to mind. Garlic... his killer, came to mind as well. Now there was this thing in front of them, another monster born of his people. The Kai seemed at least somewhat right to blame them for all of this, even if this thing didn't come from their world.

"If he can transform, and he's not beyond that somehow. Vegito is doomed..." Piccolo finally voiced. "Which means we need a plan B."

Plan B? We barely had plan A.

"Goten," Gohan commented, turning his head to one side. "You've gotta survive this. Someone needs to get out of this alive along with our friends the Kais. I'm already dead, I can afford to be on the chopping block. Piccolo's probably obligated enough to stick around. I want you to stay back, and if things look bad-"

"I'm not leaving," Goten challenged immediately. "We're all in this together, just like the last fight."

Yea, you're definitely dad's kid.

There was a half smile in response before Gohan peered ahead, his golden aura surrounding him a second later. Everything he'd learned about battle so far, told him that he was going to need to intervene, soon. And if this Taro guy was playing with Vegito right now, that meant that as little power as he had, he was going to have to try something.

"Piccolo," Gohan commented, nodding towards him.

A white aura flourished around Piccolo a second later as the Namekian nodded back, even if he looked just as reluctant as himself. A golden aura emerged to his back, meaning Goten had transformed as well. Something unnerving ran through him again, especially as Goten transformed. Bravery was great, but he was going to need to try and keep his brother alive in all of this. Arguing with him wouldn't work anyway, he'd just loop back around and engage in the battle if he told him to buzz off.

I hate getting killed. It hurts. Shit.

Another wave of pure power washed over them with another impact, this time the sky in front of them turned white as the energy of the blow was released.

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Vegito:

He felt his fist slam into Vegito's cheek, shoving flesh back as the distinct sensation of a knee impacting his abdomen was sensed. The pain was 'real' enough, and his breath felt shortened. Bouncing back, the fusion shook his head slightly, trying to keep everything together so far. In a burst of light and speed however, he took off, colliding with Taro a dozen times in the sky as the pair of them blurred in and out of existence with either pure speed, or forms of instant transmission. Each clash sent shockwaves rolling out over the surface of the Earth. Each blow, either as their shoulders slammed into one another or their fists or kicks met, were devastating. The reverberations which even shook his own body, felt like it could split him back into two forms.

Even now though, they'd been escalating gradually. It was still remarkable to him that this being could keep up with him every step of the way, especially as he started to take this more seriously.

Finally, as they appeared in the air, Vegito felt a difference in the very motion of the air, Taro's frame appeared seemingly out of the ether, his guard lowered as his arms crossed. There was a small labour to his breathing, but it wasn't anything wild. It was time to turn things up, he suspected. The last time things escalated, it was Taro pushing himself up to his level. Well, that'd clearly happened, and trading shot for shot was getting tiring.

I think we're going to get moving on finishing this.

Inclining his head towards the ground, an opened, half imploded crater below them, Taro implicated his direction. The air around them grew cold as the other 'Saiyan' descended to the ground below.

Alright, I'll bite.

Almost immediately afterwards, Vegito zipped to the surface of the crater, appearing across from the other Saiyan. The same cold air followed as it brushed past him. Stretching his neck back and forth, Vegito just smirked confidently. The shoe had gone onto the other foot at least. This was going to be the ego trip, he was sure. The last few minutes of battle had taught him about how petty Taro was. Conserving his true power just in order to prove a point, and only when he was obviously losing pushing himself to his real limits.

"Vegito," Taro's voice was filled with something akin to... kindness? "I'm grateful for this experience. To do battle with a being of your calibre is typically very dull. But in this instance, you've truly outdone yourself. I know there are more powerful versions of you across time and space, but this has been truly a fascinating step towards my final victory over this flawed existence."

Closing his eyes as he uncrossed his arms, Taro's smile seemed to grow.

"I'll show my gratitude to you by allowing you to fight me at your best. You may acquire as much power as you can. Transform, I'd encourage it even. I know you're only in your base Super Saiyan form."

Something seemed wrong about all of this. Something also seemed to be amiss. The fact that Taro was accessing all of this power as well seemed to be remarkable, given that he'd not visibly transformed yet. He could sense changes in his power that seemed to almost imply that he'd been accessing power beyond his regular form, almost like a Ghost Super Saiyan. How much deeper was his power capable of going if he was asking to fight him at his best?

Well, I'll run down my one hour time limit if I keep getting into these weak pissing matches. Alright, if he wants to see me at my best? Sure.

Closing his gloved fists, power began to ripple over his frame. Electricity surged a moment later. The very air around him seemed to almost catch fire with golden power while the rippling effect of the static which was being generated around him became more and more intense. His aura's size grew rapidly, before intensifying at the core and coming closer to his body. The very act of doing all this however caused the ground beneath him to rumble violently. The very Earth quaked with his transformation as his hair arched higher. Two massive towers of wind swept up around him, sending dust and ruin into the air as the tornado's born of his power surged with his power. The very clouds above them began to shift and turn, the entirety of the Earth's atmosphere seemingly turning with his power. Unable to help it, Vegito roared as his power began to peak as the transformation finished. The twister's died seconds later as they fell into nothingness.

The thrum around him was intense as the familiar noise of his Super Saiyan aura whipped around him. This was intense, more intense than he'd ever experienced as either Vegeta or Kakarot. The strength at his fingertips was something which transcended the physical world. A storm of energy swirled around him just by standing there. Lightning shot down from the sky, his very presence creating enough disturbance to cause the natural phenomenon around him. The air felt hot enough to almost burn with his aura before he just breathed out, letting his aura fade a moment later, though traces of electricity still flickered around him while Vegito smirked back at Taro finally.

Well, you wanted this didn't you? Now it's going to be time to put you to an end.

The other Saiyan's eyes were widened slightly with a bit of shock, though his confidence rapidly returned. It was false bravado, that much Vegito was sure of. After all, he did still have one ace in the hole to push things even further.

"You can surrender if you want," Vegito offered. "I'm not a big fan of the whole inter-dimensional time travelling tyranny, but I'm sure we can arrange some kind of appropriate place for you here. Oh, maybe you can double up with Garlic in Hell? Two living beings trapped down there instead of one. Or I can end this now, and get you sent down to see the other bastards down there."

"Bastards like your son, Gohan?"

Wha? How'd he know?

Now it was Vegito's turn to be mildly shocked, he never let his concentration slip as the other Saiyan slowly shifted his stance on the cracked Earth he was standing on. He was focusing his ki for something, and it was hard to tell what. A groundswell of energy was already picking up, and in the air Vegito could hear the screams beginning to catch in the wind once more. The same black and white aura slowly began to swirl around the ground around them as Taro's eyes intensified.

"Well, no one is perfect," Vegito responded, his tone dead serious before the aura around Taro expanded, rapidly. "I'm sure you of all people understand that."

A song of agony seemed to whip up around them. It howled through the air and through his mind as the world itself shrieked. The rumbling which had passed only seconds ago, reemerged, this time almost with more intensity. The intensity of the aura flared before the 'choir' reached a feverish pitch, it's shriek blasting over him as he even felt his ears begin ringing with the sounds of what could best be described as his son, Trunks. The ground shattered beneath Taro as he started to chuckle darkly, his eyes staring up at him as their powers matched, and Taro's superseded his own. The ki around them swirled chaotically while the fused Saiyan tried his best to follow Taro's power.

When it finally halted, the other Saiyan let his back stretch slightly before staring him over.

"So... Super Vegito," he remarked. "Do you understand? Do you understand what I am?"

There was another ace in the hole, which was to call on the new form Kakarot... Goku, had mastered. Briefly, he considered it as his eyes peeled ahead. It'd mean drawing down his endurance, but giving him a chance to match this... black hole that was in front of him. It was hard not to let his concern come across his features. He knew the moment he came into existence, the moment Goku and Vegeta merged, that he was to fight a battle that could never have been waged otherwise.

But Taro's eyes flicked to above and to the right. It wasn't hard to sense the arrival of Piccolo, Goten, and Gohan. Their being here was a problem. There was no way he could fight against this thing with them here. Power was at the core of the problem, he didn't even know how they could begin to contribute.

"I understand..." Vegito responded folding his arms. "...That you're a monster, and you're going to be stopped."

Something seemed to tick after his remark. The amalgamation of misery in front of him just flinched for a brief moment, before looking towards his friends again.

Shit. He's going to attack them.

"You three? You will have the opportunity to view the powers of a being who is responsible for your very being. I never dreamed I'd allow you all to see this. I didn't create any of you to even understand what you're about to see."

Wow, the arrogance here.

"You're not that much stronger than me," Vegito scoffed. "The second you make a mistake..."

The look he got back in turn made his blood turn to ice as he realized something, a flicker in the eyes told him something bad was coming.

"Goku, be careful, we think he's holding-"

"You are all going to be able to see the splendour and wonder of true creation," Taro's words slipped out. "Your imagined minds, your fake psyches, were never meant to comprehend what I am... Because you see, there is no you... there is only me."

The scream in the air intensified for a brief second before it died. The entire aura flickered away before fire caught up around Taro's feet. Golden energies swirled up and around his body before massive chunks of the Earth began to rip away, shattering in the air around him before scattering around him in a wind of chaos. A golden light seemed to emerge, only around Taro himself. The sounds of his sons' screaming filled the air again, only this time it was half drowned by the loudest thrum he'd ever heard. The pulsation noise of the Super Saiyan aura filled the air as the fiery golden aura expanded around him. The edges of it pushed against his own aura, and seemingly flew into the heavens. The very Earth felt like it was going to split as trees were toppled all around them and fissures opened.

The skies turned black, and it began to rain lightning all around them. The clouds which had turned to follow almost his orbit, were ripped away as they swept through the air, helplessly drawn into the thrall of this golden light. Ki felt almost real, as if it reached through the gates inside of Taro's body and simply became real. An aura folded in from seemingly around them, wrapping around the golden flames which reached the skies, slowly reducing it in towards the Saiyan in front of him.

His already blue eyes turned turquoise. Hair shot straight up, sending his soft almost human hair into Saiyan barbs. Golden energy rippled across it, before the hair itself seemed to turn into a golden fire, before settling on its hardened shape. Lightning struck him from above before it rippled around his frame, his hair hardening as it edged higher. The aura that touched the very heavens reduced slowly encompass only his form. The geological shifting and changing of the Earth's surface slowed as the golden light around him slowly faded. Beneath the thrum, Vegito could still hear the quiet whimpering of pain edged into the very aura itself.

Looking up towards his friends, before staring back at him, Taro's features remained cool for only a few seconds before a small smile broke out.

"I can see your fate. I wrote it."

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Turles:

Where are you?

The small wizard behind him was visibly unsettled but Turles didn't care much.

"And what exactly am I going to do, you oaf?" Babidi's voice piped up. "My powers can't work between dimensions, and what am I exactly going to do?"

Hell's environment rumbled with the power coming from the Earth. That was the problem that lay in the way to his triumphant return to the world of the living. So far he'd collected Babidi, with the help of Cell and the now useless Ogre. Bardock was the next one to find. He'd make his old man scream if he needed to. Premonition of the future, psychic powers, and magic were going to be his tools to change things to his own advantage.

What was strange however, was the acquisition of actors he didn't need to achieve his little plan. Garlic Junior had been tailing them for some time. Dabura was lingering nearby, and even Bojack and his crew had managed to find themselves following them. Why was the main thing bothering Turles now while he looked for his father.

"Do you sense that? Of course not. The reason this world is trembling is because of another. You are going to help me, or I am going to make the next thousand years of your stay here truly a nightmare. Do you understand me, filth?"

A scowling, yet scared wizard nodded roughly while Cell just smirked.

"You know, all these years I've spent down here, I can't help but admit that it's been the most fun over the last year once we all started to get to know one another so much better."

"Pitiful," Bojack scoffed.

"And what brings you to the humble reunion?" Cell countered.

"You've got to do something while waiting for another fire tornado to kill you and wash this world clean. Besides, we all sensed you three leave... why else would everyone else here be taking an interest? You all died again."

Garlic was snarling with anger in the background of all of this. Fitting, given he was a miserable little shit.

"So, what's your plan, exactly? Now that we've been searching for Bardock for what seems like an eternity," Cell remarked. "After all, I am interested to know."

I don't entirely even know myself. I need to find a way to play the odds.

"I-"

"Intend to play the odds," Bardock's voice cut him off, as the Saiyan in question stood atop a great spiked ball.

Turning his head immediately, Turles saw several very familiar figures next to him. King Vegeta, Nappa, and an army of weak Saiyans. This was pitiful. Except for when he saw King Cold rise up behind the crowd, lacking Frieza, but not lacking an army of his deceased soldiers. This of course, told him that Bardock himself was up to something. He was playing all of this to his own advantage, Turles knew it.

"And apparently so are you," Turles fired back. "I'm glad to see you've brought so many friends along. But to what end?"

"The future demands it," Bardock's voice filled the void between them, as nebulous as always.

What a frustrating creature to deal with. The visions of the future he was cursed with had driven him mad, and had made him insufferable to deal with. Everything was always from the lens of the future, never the lens of the now. It was always his insulation to get what he wanted, or his ways to making sure outcomes came the way he wanted them to be. King Vegeta, King Cold, and anyone in the armies at his back had to know this. They both had some kind of benefit from this.

"Great, another bland future to the benefit of Kakarot-"

"To the benefit of the race," King Vegeta remarked. "If we do not act, our race will end in doom, today."

Ah, so that's what brought the goatee along.

"Who cares?" Cell rebuked.

"You should, if we fail here, the last of your sons will fall next, Cell. And King Cold's eldest son Cooler will fall," Bardock's voice cut through. "You'll all have your reasons. Another chance at life, perhaps the willingness to help a friend... the hopes of one day escaping this prison."

"Ah, I thought I'd miscounted them when we got here," Cell joked, smirking arrogantly as he crossed his arms. "You have my interest."

Finally, Bardock looked directly past Turles however, looking at Babidi himself.

"A chance for revenge."

"Oh, all the carrots you dangle before us," Garlic scoffed. "And what's the big plan then? If we're all so enthralled by the notion..."

"I can't exactly cast a spell to-" Babidi's words were cut off, his eyes glazing over for a moment. "... unless..."

Landing in front of them, Bardock looked at Turles dead in the eyes, before looking at the others.

"Things have changed. The timeline of our universe is in flux, it can go a thousand directions. But there is only one definite truth. If we do nothing, nothing will change for anyone here, from now on," Bardock remarked, before staring back at Turles. "We cannot go back and fight. We can only make an offer."

And you'll be the one to make that offer, won't you?

Turles eyed Bardock seriously, before looking back to the others, giving them all a knowing stare.

Well, won't this work out?

"And what is that offer, exactly?" Turles finally asked.

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Taro:

There was a soft sound coming from within him. It was the quiet shriek of agony rumbling up from the very depths of his mind, these fragmented versions of his mind shackled to his being wrenched and twisted as he unleashed what he knew was a close approximation of his true power. All around him he could sense and see the looks of absolute horror. They could sense the true nature of what he was now. They could see past their fists, and see only their fates. Each one of them could only imagine their own defeat, their own fall from grace, and the silencing of their songs in the void of existence.

The golden field around him had bolts of black lightning ripple through it, while he felt his gaze fall on Vegito, before tracing to the others. For a strange reason it lingered on Gohan. All around him he could sense something. A field of something permeated around him. A bend in time seemed to almost fold around him, and it was only after a few more moments that Taro felt his smirk reemerge. Calling on this much power, he could see those impacted directly by a tear. The tears through time and space that he, Junia, and Brass had left travelling through different timelines and universes shattered timelines, fragmenting them yet further, changing events and altering moments.

It would explain what makes you so different from the Gohan I knew. You're the thing that changed when we first fragmented this timeline. It explains why you are so pitiful compared to a Gohan of the same age.

The Namekian had a similar, far newer field. One that was very familiar.

So you're the one who tried to prepare this world. The green foil. The Namekian has become enough of a nuisance.

Turning his attention forward again, he crossed his arms, knowing Kakarot could hear him.

"I can see it all now, you know," Taro commented. "I can see it all through the lens of a thousand worlds."

The fused Saiyan, "Super Vegito" let his feet slide back as he edged away, trying to obtain insignificant distance to better react to him. It was pitiful to watch.

"You've said that before," Vegito responded roughly, clearly unnerved still by the disparity of power between them. "What does that even mean?"

Turning his head up and letting his smirk continue, Taro felt the wind brush past him before he closed his eyes slowly, the familiar Super Saiyan aura around him thrumming.

"I created this world. I created it the moment I passed through it. It's just another link in the chair of a billion timelines that I've reached out and touched," the remark came smoothly from his lips. "In fact... I think you'd notice Kakarot. This world's chain was formed when I simply passed through it. The changing of only seconds allowed your son to be taken from you. Yes, that isn't just happenstance. This very universe is but one of my mistake-"

There was a look that crossed Vegito's face, as if lining up what he'd said, but it wasn't Vegito's fist that Taro slid to the side from. Sweeping past him, landing on both his feet to stop his fall and skidding for a dozen metres ahead of him, the Gohan of this tainted world scattered the ground beneath him while he trailed ahead.

"Ah, I can see that you're upset," Taro commented calmly. "I can assure you, this whole existence being in the state it's in will be fixed..."

There was almost a quiet fury behind the other Saiyan. It was strange. The last time they'd met when Broly had been here and murdered everyone, Trunks had considered it somehow strange that the monster he'd fought in the future would become a saviour of so many. Though of course, he knew now what a depraved creature he was in comparison to his usual spirit. The halo above his head was ironic, because Taro knew Gohan was no saint.

"You're the reason I'm stuck in Hell," he breathed angrily. "I'd never even be near there if it wasn't for you-"

Ah, the wonderful truth rang true. Tilting his head upwards arrogant, almost as if it were a tick, Taro just gave him the same look he had before.

It's beautiful, isn't it? He blames me for sending him to Hell, yet he's the one whose killed all those people. Did I make him kill those people? To be fair, I didn't even make Raditz win. All my breaking of this timestream did was change a few seconds. Raditz lived, and Kakarot did not. Raditz flees with the scared child, who while frightful over the years, murders his way across the cosmos.

As if that's my fault. I suppose it is my fault, in so far that all of this is just simple my dream... but to be blamed so directly? I find it ironic.

"It's so rare that I imagine you as hellbound, Son Gohan," Taro remarked in response. "But I suspect the reason you're in Hell is a giant blue brute beat you to death. At least, the reason why you're there now. Don't worry, I know you miss it. Not that it matters. Because only I, matter."

It's true as well. I am the only real thing here.

There was something dark written across his supposed cousin's features as energy rippled through the air around him. Anger was always his strong suit. But in all of this, Taro had forgotten about Vegito. A blur of rapid motion appeared next to him, but it slowed to a crawl as his body braced itself, seeing the other Saiyan scowling at him, his arm stretched out. His hand froze in the air itself as Taro took only a few steps forward, staring into the fury riddled features of the fused being. The gravity of how insignificant this universe was, and how insignificant their lives were, must have set in. From the moment of their birth, to the death of their planet, Kakarot and Vegeta were nothing but a story his consciousness had birthed into existence. At a whim their world, their outcomes, their lives had been changed, and their god cared nothing for how it'd changed.

Of course, it could also just be Kakarot, fuelled by the anger and rage at his small infraction into this world. It didn't matter. The Vegeta inside this body had murdered his "sister", and the Gohan in front of them had killed his "brother". It meant that somewhere, deep in his mind, he'd found it fitting to shed himself of what had been companionship. Perhaps it meant it was finally time to reset this existence. This world had made him complete enough, hadn't it? Perhaps now he could bring all of himself back together, and rebuild the fabric of space and time into a new, superior world. One world, one world for him to be born into, and to be perfect this time.

Simply lowering himself below the punch, he aimed up with his own elbow strike, before planting it straight into Vegito's sternum. Time cut back to real space as the fused warrior gasped in shock. His entire body froze, trembling as he staggered back. The shockwave of energy from the single blow reverberated through the merged being. A gasping sound hit the air around him as the other Saiyan's hair turned brown-black, falling out of its Super Saiyan form. A shocked, and almost afraid look passed by the other Saiyan before Taro took several steps forward. From behind he sensed Gohan's energy swing towards him. It was simple enough to grab Vegito himself by the shoulders, and toss the other Saiyan with all his might over his shoulder towards Gohan himself.

The sound barrier broke as Vegito's body broke through the air around him, heating it as atoms were knocked together at a force rarely seen on the surface of the earth, leaving a trail of burning fire in the air before the fusion ploughed into Gohan's form, sending the two hurtling back.

Pointing both hands out, forming them into one, Taro shifted his arms several times before locking them in place.

"Burning Attack," Trunks shouted.

The bolt of golden energy left his hands, rapidly closing the distance between itself and the two helpless Saiyans. Or was that three helpless Saiyans? It didn't matter either way. A trail of fire and dust had leaped into the air in the path of the pair. Golden energy burst back into existence, this time far brighter than before. Long flowing golden hair mixed into the energy before the bolt struck home. The horizon itself was consumed in the clash of ki. Golden light surged into the air to the height of the very clouds themselves. Countless hectares of forest disappeared in the flash of light as they entered the newly formed caldera of destruction which was clearly happening beneath the light. The mountains around them trembled and two of them even sunk into the Earth. Masses of magma began to burst from the open wound on the planet as the Earth itself rumbled. Huge towers of smoke bloomed into the air from the shattered mountains, before the very smoke itself was burned away in the burning light.

A blast-wave rolled past him, but it glided past him as if it were a simple breeze. The trees around him however, were flattened, shredded, or torn up from their very roots. The ground was torn up or turned into dust in the wind, being eroded away in seconds.

The light started to fade only seconds later, before only a gigantic, black cloud billowed out of the gigantic wound his attack had left behind.

Too simple.

Turning his eyes into the air, he gazed at the Namekian, who'd shielded his younger "cousin" Goten from the blast, both looked clearly distraught.

"Piccolo," he commented. "Do you regret your decisions to follow me yet?... Surely must. Because it is what I desire."

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Gohan:

It was warm. Was he back in Hell already? It almost felt like the fires could cook the flesh from his bones. Something heavy was on his chest, and burning carbon was entering his lungs. It didn't matter much considering he only breathed as a reflex. He was dead, he didn't need to breathe. It was surreal somehow, listening to that thing out there talk about his life, or to talk about how it was a god. Every second here made that walking nightmare seem more and more like its boasts were true. Which just angered him even more. It was going to strip everyone he cared about of everything, and leave him sealed away in agony for an eternity.

If he did create this place, then everything wrong with the world was his fault. If he created the instance in time that made him into the man he was, his entire life was just... collateral damage. It was nothing but a byproduct of him moving through time and simply causing a shift in time? He understood the concept from how time could be utilized for mass transit of supplies across the Planet Trade. Disrupting time could cause all kinds of havoc. The kind of havoc that might change where people are, and at what time.

But he imagines me being in Hell.

Opening his eyes finally, Gohan looked to his front, seeing the unconscious body of his father strewn across him.

It flashed before his mind just as the event had seconds earlier. Vegito's body had turned gold, before it'd gone beyond just being an ascended Saiyan. He'd challenged the blast at the last moment, grappling with it and shielding him.

They should have fled with their speed, rather than protected him. Now they were down their best fighter, and worst of all, even if he were here, they were absolutely no match for whatever this thing was. Just being in the blastwave had nearly killed him. He brushed some blood from his forehead before pushing his father up off him.

"Dad?" he asked, looking at Goku as he flopped onto his back. "Dad, hey, wakeup time."

Where the Hell is Vegeta?

Looking around, he couldn't even spy Vegeta's form. All he could see was smoke however. Fires burned in this pit he was in, and the light from the sky was blocked out by it.

"... uhhhh..." Goku finally murmured. "Gohan?"

"Yea," Gohan responded. "Yea I'm here, dad."

Gradually sitting up, his father looked exhausted. Exhaustion seemed to pour out of his entire frame as his shoulders slumped. Right now even he didn't know what to do, and he knew Goku would struggle to know as well. The endless optimism of his father was even going to be tempered by reality.

"I don't know if we can stop him," Gohan finally said, sensing Taro's great power beyond the smoke. It was still a dreadful scream across his senses... a thousand screams even.

Piccolo's done. Goten's finished. They've got less than a fraction of a hope. This is all falling apart. What the Hell are we going to do?

"He's stronger than I imagined," his father's voice cut into his thoughts. "But he has to have a weakness. All that strength can't just come from nowhere. There has to be a solution."

The look his father exchanged with him was knowing. The older Saiyan then nodded, beginning to rise to his feet, and looking around for Vegeta as well.

"No Vegeta either," Gohan remarked.

A thunder crash exploded from beyond their sight, before the force of the impact blasted away the smoke around them. It sucked the atmosphere around them away and shattered the already ruined fragments of the Earth around them. As if on cue, Piccolo's frame slammed into the ground in front of them, breathing, but just barely.

One hit.

The familiar Super Saiyan thrum emerged ahead of them as Gohan looked up, seeing the form of Taro land from above in a casual fashion. His eyes started searching for his little brother. Goten was anything but a coward, and that was worrying him right now. Something felt like it was scratching at the back of his mind. Blood trickled out of his nose, but he brushed it away. The haze of his vision grew world for only a second before he just locked his gaze on Taro's form.

"No," Goku breathed. "Not again."

Goten's throat was in the monster's hand, and it struck Gohan himself as a mirror image of his brother's death at the hands of Broly. Only he was still alive.

"Dad," Gohan said quietly. "Think. What can we do? We can't catch him. What's the plan?"

"G-Goku," Piccolo breathed, barely pulling himself up. "I'm sorry. He's stronger...I... I'm not even sure the Spirit Bomb could stop him."

Spirit bomb?

Turning his attention to his father, Goku just swallowed before nodding.

"No one seems to care that I have the boy's neck in his hand?" Taro mocked. "Normally one of you is supposed to try to save him by now. To die undefended is truly shameful. Wouldn't you say Goten?"

"The Spirit Bomb will win."

Looking around him quickly, Gohan felt like he was losing his mind. Who the Hell was that?

"That's what your crazy old friend Bardock seems to think. But I've got a proposition for you, Gohan. You remember me, don't you? The man who raised you, who you've so selfishly told you're going to leave down in Hell."

Oh if today could get any worse than it is right now, I'd really, really be hard pressed to imagine it.

"You see Gohan, I've gotten to talking... bully... and forcing people into my perspective down here, that we're all worse off if you and your little planet get destroyed. The door closes on getting out of this wretched place," Turles explained. "So... we're here to make a deal."

"Hello Gohan," Garlic's voice cut in. "We're going to be so much closer than we already were."

Something make his skin crawl as he heard all these voices. Staring up at the monster clinging to his brother's neck, all Gohan could do was tunnel vision his view at him. Wishing back Turles, who in turn would try to kill everyone? Yea that was like trying to avoid getting shot, just to get stabbed. Even if he didn't try to kill everyone, clearly he was intent on wishing back their friends in the afterlife. Babidi, Cell, Bojack, and others...

Get fucked.

There was a quiet on the other side of the link.

But it was Goku who stepped forward, exhausted and low on power, who shook his head.

"You think that all this power makes you strong," Goku shot back at him. "You think that by beating us, you're proving something, well-"

"I don't, actually," Taro remarked, before tossing Goten towards them. The small frame of his brother aimed to crash into the ground before them, but his father caught him. "None of you mean anything to me. I've long since grown tired of seeing the same garbage filling the universe. All of you are mistakes. The best worlds I've imagined are the one's where Frieza wiped out your pitiful planets. At least then it's something remotely different."

Still lording above them, his aura started to intensify. The ground around them began to tremble as dust and rocks climbed into the air around them at the whim of Taro's aura. How could anything even fight this thing?

"I must admit, you were a far worthier opponent than your father and his friends. It's very rare that I found someone who managed to outdo me," Cell's voice cut in. "I have few expectations from what I've seen from you however. Any commitments you make are at best nebulously followed. I think Turles and his little plan to come back to life is optimistic at best if he's relying on your word. If you listen to these fools however, they've come up with quite the scheme to help you. And I'll do it only out of boredom, and spite towards the creature up there that dared to humiliate me."

"There are three doors to the world," Taro's voice into his conversation as his feet slowly planted themselves on the ground. "I always choose the door that leads to my goal."

Gohan looked to Piccolo, who couldn't even stand yet. They then turned to Goku as he held onto his brother. Behind them he could see the Kais flying through the air, trying to get closer but staying at a watching distance.

"Agree to wish me back, Gohan, and-"

And you'll what, exactly? Have Garlic, Cell, and a handful of other idiots do what exactly? You're all trapped in Hell.

"That is true. We are all trapped here. But that doesn't mean our power is," Turles's voice whispered. "If you were alive, I suppose that would complicate this. But you're dead already. Which means I suspect it can contain enough power without destroying you-"

You're going to what? Say it plainly, because right now I get the sick feeling you're thinking of-

"Let's just say that we have a plan between the cabal of sorcerers, scientists, and monsters down here, that gives us a chance, through you, to provide you with direct aid. Now, many would like to do that whether I am satiated or not... but you see Gohan, I won't let them unless you agree to wish me back. You owe me," Turles's voice sounded far sterner than before, this time clearly done playing at giving him much of an option if he wanted to get their help. "So, you gain the power you need to win, in exchange for what I want."

In his most private thoughts, shielded internally, Gohan just stared at this monster as it slowly stepped forward menacingly. It was going to torment them before they killed them, he could already tell. There was no way to win right now, and even if this plot didn't work, he could at least say he tried. Though part of him was reminded of Cell's words in his head. The android had summarized who he'd been for so much of his life so well. His word had meant next to nothing until recently. It was Turles and Cooler who taught him that obligations to others which were inconvenient didn't matter. There was no way Turles was going to change...

"Now then,"

Sadly, for all the changes he'd made, Gohan knew one thing about himself that he'd wanted to avoid since starting this new life. For all he'd changed, the more things changed, the more they stay the same.

I agree.

The lie was easier to live with than following through with it.

"I think it's time that I begin to end this game. Shall we start with... The Kais?" Taro questioned openly.

Something strange began to happen as Gohan felt his body almost seem to heat up. His heart started racing before he fell to one knee as something almost felt like it was squirming inside of him, and growing. It wasn't physical, it was ki. It was disgusting, like a worm almost, pulsating inside of his own power as he felt his hand fall to the ground, his breathing becoming harsher.

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Vegeta: Earlier

"You're pathetic," Vegeta commented to the trembling body, clutching his boot. "After all this, you grab hold of me and expect mercy? How much mercy have you shown anyone else? How many times have you killed me? Kakarot? Or others? How pathetic."

Opening his palm, Vegeta felt blue energy collect into his hand as he let his eyes looked down into hers. It took only a second for her head to slip to the ground however, unable to be held up. Her grip on his boot went dead, before she faded away from consciousness. The energy was still in his hand as the Prince stared down at her coldly. The burns and marks across her body were letting blood flow out of her with every weak beat of her heart.

Perhaps that was enough. To leave her here defeated here. It was a death sentence, killing her himself was pointless because her wounds were clearly fatal and in a very short term. She perhaps had a dozen minutes, maybe less. It would be more mercy than she showed anyone else just to leave her here. His stare lingered however, looking over the features of the daughter he never had. Certainly he had Bulla, but that wasn't what he meant. So much of him was in this strange woman from another world. Perhaps that was what was the most remarkable to him, that this was so close to everything he'd been before the Earth.

Stepping back, Vegeta continued to stare down at her broken body before floating into the air, landing on the outside of the crater her body had made, before turning and beginning to walk away. The only sounds he heard was the wind, and the sound of his boots stepping on the scarred surface of the Earth. The hellish nightmare they're turned part of the Earth's surface into with their battle had spread across huge swathes of the world in front of him.

Right now he was going to need to regroup, he needed more energy, and his body was shredded. Kakarot and Trunks were struggling, even disappearing from his senses all together, and he could sense Gohan and Piccolo's energy. Gohan's was the bigger surprise in all of this.

There's a chance now.

Bracing his arms, Vegeta prepared to gather what energy he could and take flight.

The hesitation that followed was almost enough to make him spit in anger. Turning his head back towards the crater now far from his vision, he was met with memories of his own past. The memories perhaps of what could be called... mistakes. The memories of his own father's cold shoulder to strengthen his character came to the fore. Following those, he could see Bulma holding onto Trunks when he was small and him giving her not a moment's notice. It was all about his own strength. This girl was the mirror staring back at him, as if she was from the past coming to haunt him. Gohan hadn't been the only one with skeletons in his closet, even if his weren't quite as vile.

Looking at the ground, the Prince took several breaths as he tried to let it all go.

Kakarot is a fool for letting these villains and monsters survive. How many times can he forgive them, and watch them stab him in the back?

The Namekian had killed him instead of Raditz on Earth at one point. He'd betrayed Kakarot on Namek, at least once. His own estranged son had betrayed him and nearly killed him when Turles arrived! What was the point in trying to turn someone around? Especially someone unworthy of sympathy. Just because this monster had grabbed him and looked at him for mercy didn't mean anything. He'd already gone far enough not simply blasting her into ash on the spot. This beast would have killed his son, his actual daughter, his wife, and all of Kakarot's friends. She was specifically used as a nightmare to haunt him by Towa in his mind. Why save her, just to wait for her to betray him? Why bother?

Who even cared if she changed her path? What did that matter to him anyway? Even if she could.

You've had more than one chance.

It was Kakarot's voice in his head. Something disgusting twisted in his stomach at the idea of being lectured by Kakarot. His rival... his friend, as much as he would never openly admit it, was someone who left his low-class mark on everyone he touched. The fact he was even considering walking back over to the well deserved, cold pit his 'daughter' had fallen into was a testament to how far he'd slipped, even in his own eyes. He wasn't her father, he never raised her, and he had no responsibility to her. She was biologically related to him, and nothing more.

His blue aura emerged around him as he prepared to take off once more. His eyes peeled for the sky as he thought of how to get to the Lookout. A senzu bean was going to be his main avenue to rapid recovery in time for the next battle against this Taro figure. The one who wanted to murder his son. A son that was really only biologically related to him. He never raised him, he'd only raised the Trunks of this world. He'd fought and struggled alongside a son very different from the one now at risk at the hands of this Taro monster.

Something strained at the back of his mind before Vegeta looked back towards the depression in the landscape. He felt his aura fade around him while his features remained neutral. Walking several metres towards the break in the Earth's surface, the smallest from the battle he'd just participated in, Vegeta stepped over its edge, before looking back down at the body which was increasingly being deprived of its blood.

"... I can't believe I'm doing this."

Kneeling down, Vegeta took one last moment to look over the dying form of his enemy, before reaching down carefully, pulling the body up. A Saiyan tail hung lifelessly over his left arm before the Saiyan Prince just looked up, breathing out while his aura reemerged around his body before the ground beneath him was shredded to pieces as he launched himself into the sky.

His own suit was covered in a mixture of blood, mud, and soot already. The fact he felt his chest getting warmer as blood escaped from her own wounds was something familiar. It was the sensation of someone dying in his arms. It was easy to remain detached, even if it was somewhat unnerving. An annoyed noise left him when he looked down at the body in his arms, assessing the likelihood of her surviving much longer on the journey. The wind was passing by them fast enough to blow her hair against him as well. When he looked back up however, the lookout had come into view.

His right foot landed first, before his left planted down opposite it.

"Dende! We have visit- Oh my."

A green figure emerged from the entrance, next to the being known as Mister Popo. Both of Dende's eyes widened at the sight.

"Vegeta? I thought you were helping Goku and the others? What're you-?"

"I need to be healed," Vegeta remarked bluntly, getting straight to business as he knelt down, placing Junia's body on the ground in front of him. Hurriedly, the green figure approached him, a look of concern clearly written on his face for Vegeta. He didn't recognize the girl yet, which was good.

Kneeling down, Vegeta saw the Namekian put his hands out and watched them glow. The burns and scrapes across his body had burned, but now were slowly soothed as they disappeared from his body all together. Far worse lacerations mended and his blood seemed to swell back to normal, ignoring the loss of so much liquid.

Immediately his body felt revitalized, enhanced, stronger than it was before. He closed his fists just to make sure, before nodding to Dende.

"Good, now for her," he commented, gesturing to the body. "And be quick about it."

The weak rise and fall of her chest had gotten noticeably weaker even in the few moments he'd spent being healed.

Walking over, Dende froze before looking back at Vegeta.

"Vegeta, this is-"

"I am not Kakarot, who will listen to you whine about not wanting to heal someone you consider a threat. You'll do it, or you'll regret it."

"I don't take threats lightly, Vegeta," Dende reminded, seemingly not budging.

"Oh, well, I am certain that you don't. It's a good thing that you understand the gravity of my threats then you laughable green fool. I don't make threats, I make promises."

The air between them was left hanging with the words. Dende's eyes remained on him for only a few more moments before he turned his attention to the body. Junia's chest heaved weakly for air as it started to finally crawl to its end. Vegeta felt himself step forward, glaring.

"Your last chance," he said, his tone prosecuting the Guardian of the Earth.

Kneeling down himself again, Dende placed his arms out. The same aura and energy which had only recently healed him, now started to knit flesh back together. Burns slowly disappeared from across her body. The worst wounds her body had sustained vanished in under thirty seconds before her body slowly started to stir.

"I hope you know what you're doing Veg-" Dende's voice was cut off as a hand snapped out, grabbing the Guardian by the front of his tunic.

Standing there with his arms crossed, Vegeta just looked down at the frantic eyed girl who'd just woken up in front of him.

"Wh... where... what..." she seemed to try and reconcile where she was, staring at Dende before looking back at him.

Her eyes widened at a realization as she let go of the guardian, who jumped back as quickly as he could. She checked herself over for wounds before smirking devilishly, rising to her feet a moment later and cracking her neck to one side.

Well, the worst case scenario seemed to be upon him, but this time Vegeta felt the confidence of victory at his back. He was sure she could threaten him, but he knew he could defeat her, and he would.

"Oh you are the most foolish Vegeta I've ever seen."

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Junia: Earlier

The last thing she'd seen before all of this was her father standing over her, his hand opened and energy emitting from it. Death was a certainty. Now she was up here, on Kami's Lookout, with Dende having healed her of her mortal wounds? Her own power felt amazing right now. It felt like an endless river of strength for her to draw off of. Better yet, Vegeta himself was here, lording over her. Her impulse to fight had emerged again, this time wanting to finish what she'd started. This time she wouldn't make the same mistakes she made last time.

The fact was however, he wasn't flinching. Her eyes looked to the frantic looking creature, Mister Popo, before she looked back at Vegeta. He wasn't in a stance to fight or intervene, he was just staring at her. Something was wrong about this. Slowly, she felt her eyes drift to the clouds surrounding them, the absolute silence beyond the winds. Her senses drifted further, sensing Kakarot and Trunks were still alive, Taro had yet to kill them yet. But kill them he most assuredly would.

"Nothing to say?" she asked openly, dropping the Namekian who immediately started scurrying for cover.

"Hm," Vegeta just noised, before turning and beginning to walk towards the edge of the lookout. "I have more important people to fight."

Her eyes flashed angrily at the remark before she bore her teeth angrily at him.

"You think you can just walk away?" she shot back. "This time, I'm not going to make the same mistakes-"

"You will," Vegeta commented. "You're beaten already. You've lost already. What you choose to do now is up to you."

Something strange happened for Junia as she looked at the retreating figure of Vegeta. Confusion was written across her features, she knew, as she tried to contemplate what he was saying. What she chose? What the Hell did that mean? Looking out over the clouds again, the real sense of something else was with her as she began to examine the gravity of what was happening. She was alive. She was up here, and alive because he'd brought her here. But why? What had been the point in that? The only reason he would have was if he was going to fight her again. That had to be the reason.

"Why did you bring me here?" she called after him. "I'll kill you this time. Fight me."

It felt more like a bluff than a threat, even when she spoke it.

"I've already beaten you," Vegeta returned to her in words, turning his head to her finally and staring back coolly. "You're finished, you've not even tried to attack me yet because you're too cautious to initiate a battle with so much uncertainty in it."

The words were grating. The truth had a tendency to sting far worse than other attacks. She didn't know if she could win, in fact, she was almost certain she'd lose. The battle they'd just waged across the surface of this world had been bloody and brutal. Even when she bypassed him finally, unable to win, attempting to destroy the planet left her only more defeated. It left her dying. But she was still here. She was here and she didn't know why.

"Why am I here?" she asked, her tone unintentionally losing the harsh edge to her tone.

"I have a battle to fight," Vegeta's voice shot back at her. "I don't have time to answer your questions. Figure it out for yourself."

Battles to fight? Battles to lose, you mean.

"You're a fool," she repeated. "Do you have any concept of how powerful Taro is? His power has become something more than just that of a warrior or a Saiyan. I've seen him kill whole worlds of stronger warriors than yourselves with minimal effort. You barely defeated me. What makes you even think you can tread water against someone like him?"

"It doesn't matter. A warrior fights the battles he needs to. My family is here, and this is my home. I'll find a way to win," Vegeta's voice remarked calmly, even if he now looked nervously over the edge. "This world has taught me that doing the right thing often comes at a heavy price."

"He eats them, you know. He eats the Trunks of ever world we come across. He sucks their minds and souls out of their bodies. I've seen him literally take bites out of him after he's done. He's completely lost his mind and he's constantly gaining power. You're insane to think you can challenge him. If you want to survive this world, I would either get with the program, or run."

There was a short laugh from Vegeta before he looked back at her, this time with a glimmer of something she'd never seen before.

"I find it amusing that you hate me that much, when you've done nothing but follow me around. I lived the same way under Frieza. I eventually made a choice to fight him and obtain something for myself. I stepped out from his shadow and became something more," Vegeta explained. "Stay in the shadow if you want."

In a flash of blue energy, he disappeared, leaving her behind. Turning her head, she gazed at the frightened Popo and Dende, but just eyed them for a few moments, feeling the wind brush past her again. That was it, he'd left her behind with nothing. No answers, just a comment that she was in Taro's shadow, and had to make a choice. A choice about what? She'd chosen to live. That had been the choice she'd been living with.

... Her whole life.

Her eyes slowly widened as she realized the deeper meaning behind it all. Every moment she'd been alive, she'd been in a tyranny. A tyranny run by Turles and Vegeta. She'd been a plaything, a pawn to them for their own purposes and gains. Then she'd escaped that with Brass and Taro into the unknown. She'd been free of all of the shackles which had held her, and extracted revenge at every turn on her father and others in any form she found them. She'd gained strength and eclipsed everything that'd been expected of her. But slowly she'd fallen behind, and it changed. That freedom, even if it was a freedom clouded by the tyranny she'd come from, slowly turned into a new prison. A prison she found herself constantly in the shadow of. Death could come at any time if she displeased him, so her behaviour changed to better suit that. It was the same prison she'd wanted to escape when she'd first started all of this.

Now here she was. She was afraid, just like she used to be afraid. She was powerless to break free from this thing which she'd help create. She'd made her own prison. What was there to do about it? It was so... bizarre, that it was Vegeta who was the one to finally let her think about this. But to challenge Taro was certain death.

It still didn't answer why he'd spared her, but it did give her something so foreign she'd almost forgotten she'd ever had one.

A choice.

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Vegeta:

That attack.

It'd been immense. It'd taken everything the merged being he'd just been apart of was to stop it. Kakarot's instinct to protect his boy, and the instincts to protect the planet itself had been the primary driver for such an intervention. Still, it'd left him weak and unable to hold even his form together. And now, Vegeta realized, he didn't even know where he was. The moment when he and Kakarot split he'd been awake still, Kakarot had passed out in all of it, before the last of the wave struck them. He'd felt almost as if his own body was going to be overwhelmed.

And now he was laying here. A little singed and exhausted, but alive. Alive and surrounded by what he could best describe as an apocalypse. The forest they'd been fighting in was now nothing short of a complete wasteland, filled with the corpses of trees. Roughly, the Saiyan noble found himself rising to his feet, examining the area around him. Kakarot must have disappeared in all of this.

"You saw his strength," a voice emerged from the smoke behind him, a very familiar one. "It's even more than I imagined."

Turning his attention behind him, Vegeta spied the origin of the voice. Junia stood there with her arms crossed, walking forward as she did.

"He has more fighting techniques to draw from than you know, more certainly than any of your friends, and his power can't be matched by any mortal I've ever seen," she explained. "Your friends are doomed, and so are you."

"Did you come here just to be a doomsayer?" Vegeta fired back, closing his fist angrily.

He'd noticed all these traits about Taro so far. It was impossible to miss how strong he was. It was terrifying. It was all but the finishing act, because this battle was over. They could do their best, but they were defeated. At a certain point even tactics and strategy broke down, and those were things this madman didn't have in short supply either. They were all dead. But how Vegeta was choosing to die was on his own terms. Anything to stick his finger into the eye of the monster which had defeated them.

"No," she answered. "I'm just curious as to why you think that any of this serves any purpose?"

It wasn't something worth answering. It was like having a devil on his shoulder, trying to feed poison to him. Turning his eyes towards her, Vegeta felt himself glaring while the Saiyan in question uncrossed her arms, taking several steps forward and smirking.

"I could kill you right now, you've spent all your power at this point, and I doubt you could put up much of a fight."

It was time to ignore her.

"If you're here to help that monster, then I suspect we will fight," Vegeta commented coolly, reaching into the back of one of his gloves and grasping the last senzu bean.

There was a pause from her before she looked ahead towards where he knew Taro was in the distance. It was where he sensed Kakarot and something strange growing. Gohan's power was fluctuating and changing. If anything else bizarre happened today he would start eating in x500 gravity to see if it effected his appetite.

"Nightmares are made of whatever that thing is over there," she commented finally. "No one is going to be able to defeat Taro."

Placing the bean in his mouth, Vegeta devoured it promptly before swallowing it down. His strength was instantly restored before he cracked his neck back and forth. When he looked at Junia from the side, seeing her staring ahead, it was strange to see the conflict in her eyes.

"I don't have time to waste talking," Vegeta remarked. "The only way to see if that's true, is to try and stop him."

"You've tried a thousand times."

So what?

"Then I've not tried enough. He's not dead yet."

In a burst of golden energy, Vegeta's body was illuminated before he rocketed towards the power, preparing himself for one last battle, one last struggle before he found himself in the next life. But he did have a victory. It wasn't just to defeat his enemy, it was to defeat their mind. Even after this world fell, he knew Junia would either die here, or be changed by this world so much as she couldn't go back. The same way that after Namek, he could never truly go back to his old life. The same way that when Gohan returned to the Earth, he could never go back either. Once you crossed the threshold, no matter how much to the contrary you wished it was, you could never go back. Going forward was the only option.

The figures in the distance appeared to his eyes, not just his ki senses. Taro turned towards the Kais and then sharply looked up at him. His eyes widened as he saw the Saiyan point his hand up at him sneering.

A wave of light appeared in front of him before he even had a chance to reengage. The light washed around him as something broke the massive blast in front of him. Fragments of light and energy scattered in all directs as the blast was dematerialized seemingly before him.

Once it all faded, Vegeta felt his eyes widen as he looked at the backs of two figures floating in the air.

"This trash heap is the Earth, Whis?"

"I suspect that its much more scenic when it's not being levelled."

"Probably true," the smaller figure remarked, turning his head enough for Vegeta to see who it was.

His heart stopped in his chest as Vegeta froze in place.

B-Be-Beerus the Destroyer!

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Taro:

Something had been in the way of his attack? That made very little sense. Whatever he wanted to die, died, just that simply. But something had intervened in a single blast that would have overwhelmed any organism on this planet. It would have overwhelmed anything short of Vegito, and it would have left even the fusion reeling. Instead there were two figures hanging in the air that seemed very familiar. The first he locked onto was the strange cat-man. A lump formed in his throat at the realization of who it was.

Beerus the Destroyer.

His eyes then cast onto Whis. Dozens of Trunks within him fed him information at a rapid rate as his mind processed what he was looking at. Gods... a God of Destruction, and an Angel. Even he hadn't expected to see this. These were the main beings of his infinite creation he feared needing to confront. Their power was immense, unparallelled in this universe. It meant that he was being confronted with the ultimate police of creation, in reality. It meant he could see the full breadth and extent of that which destroyed existence within this universe...

But even knowing that, somehow, his hand was trembling at the sight of these creatures.

They aren't supposed to be here. What is wrong with this world? Why won't it settle into being what it's meant to be? Brass and Junia weren't supposed to die yet. All these other combatants. This flawed timeline won't stop regurgitating these strange obstacles. I was to be another two hundred worlds before I confronted Beerus, or when I took Toki-Toki city. But instead they are here? Now?

The two figures descended from above, landing both their feet firmly on the ground before Beerus started to approach him, his arms behind his back.

"Who the Heck is-" Kakarot's words were cut off as Beerus addressed him, Taro, directly.

"A Saiyan? So you're the one making all the trouble. Didn't Frieza destroy your planet? I recall him rambling something about a Super Saiyan or some such," Beerus recalled.

"Oh he most certainly did Lord Beerus," Whis commented brightly. "Though that unfortunately didn't stop this particular thing from oozing out of another timeline. And I fret to say may have been the one I sensed kill the Supreme Kai of Time only a few moments ago."

A surprised look crossed the cat's face as he looked to Whis before staring back at him. A moment later, his eyes traced to the two Kais Taro had been contemplating killing only seconds earlier. Because unlike any of the invalids here, Taro knew why Beerus was concerned with the safety of these two creatures. Grasping the hilt of his sword, Taro edged backwards, sensing where the Kais were.

"What brings you to this humble world, Beerus? Shouldn't you be sleeping?" Taro asked, sensing the change in pitch in his own voice and cursing himself. "It would be a shame if you died while awake."

Beerus's eyes widened as Taro twisted around, flowing ki into his blade before swiping behind him in a spin, an arrogant smirk crossing his face. His arm stopped in mid flight however. It was hit by a force so strong it couldn't move. It trembled even against whatever held it in place as he realized he was looking directly into the yellow eyes of his counterpart. He tried to motion his arm at all, but it wouldn't even budge. A sneer slowly crossed his face as his arm trembled.

"You know Whis, after I'm done with this Saiyan, and destroy this planet," he commented, turning his head towards the other. "We really should go get milkshakes somewhere. My favourite is chocolate."

Fire could have breathed out of Taro's nose as he saw the two Kai's disappear from his vision, before Whis appeared in their place.

"An excellent idea, Lord Beerus. I heard planet Choko has an excellent array of chocolate milkshakes to try. I propose we go there, if I may be so bold?"

"A superb idea, Whis," Beerus's words passed over him as Taro breathed in and out furiously. "Though I must admit, you're much stronger than I'd have imagined otherwise. I may actually have to-"

There was a moment in laxity in the sword, and Taro took his moment to strike immediately, cutting the blade towards Beerus's head. A golden wave of light cut through the air above the God of Destruction as it passed overhead. Another dozen slashes cut through where he was standing. Electricity rolled over his form as he pushed his own power, trying to obtain the kill shot.

"You see, whoever you are, I don't much like it when people try to murder me, it's very poor form," Beerus commented calmly before Taro felt something plant itself in his stomach.

His entire body froze for a brief second before he was sent flipping back through the air. The shockwave from the punch alone sent an explosive wave through the air where he'd been, ripping apart the ground where they'd stood. Landing feet first but sliding back for a dozen metres, Taro just tried to catch his breath, wheezing as he did.

A minor setback.

Beerus landed in front of him, smiling as he did.

"Now, what do you say I destroy you now and..." there was a pause as Beerus's eyes widened.

A long laceration stretched across his cheek. The God blinked before reaching up and placing his paw like hand over it. When it pulled it away, it revealed the red blood of a God in his hand. Something akin to a pure form of hatred suddenly came over the God's face.

"You've made me bleed my own blood," Beerus remarked, his anger growing with every word.

A field of purple energy emitted around him as the world turned dark. Taro couldn't sense the power, but could feel the pressure it left behind. This was God ki, something he was having a chance to view first hand, rather than just through the lingering memories of his other selves. It was remarkable to view it and sense it disrupting the world around him.

"Now you've made me MAD!"

Jetting his hand out, without even touching him, Taro felt the palm strike from the God send him flying back once more. A dozen other blows landed before he even realized what was happening, kicks and punches stabbing into him in mid air before Beerus appeared above him, moving his hand up and flicking him in the forehead. When the final blow struck, it was like they all struck at once. A gagged cry escaped him as his body plunged into the ruined soil below.

When his hand reached to the side of the small impact site he'd made, Taro snarled as he felt his hand reach up for the side.

What is this?

We're going to die!

Dozen's of voices cried out in terror. He'd let their leash slip too far as he'd been drawing out too much power. That was only going to get worse over the coming moments. He need more power. When the two feet of Beerus landed next to his hand as he started to draw himself up, he stared up at the cat-god who was glaring down at him.

"Now, it'd be rude of me as this planet's temporary guest, not to at first at least give you a chance to explain yourself."

"I made you," Taro chuckled. "I made all of this."

The cat just smiled back at him calmly before leaning forward.

"Well, it's good to meet the creator of the universe then," he mocked. "I can assure you. I've seen more impressive creators than yourself many, many times. You'll forgive me for not being impres-"

Talking was good. It'd given him time to rally his choir. The chorus he was letting loose was going to be magnificent. The aura around him pulsed as the soft wale in the background, beneath the noise of the Super Saiyan aura, turned into a screaming howl. It reverberated through the air and ground, disrupting the very harmony of the atomic structures around him. The skies turned black once again as Taro's own aura surged forward. The ground and air seemingly stopped being what they were. The ground turned black and the air turned to blackened fire. Even Beerus seemed surprised, which was something Taro intended to use to his advantage.

In a blurred motion from prone to standing, the Saiyan jumped up and struck out. His fist barely passed by Beerus's head. In a flurry of motion, the screams of his other selves roaring out across the wasteland, Taro fought a God he'd conceived as being near immortal, near invincible, and near indomitable. The two traded spaces and occupied no spaces at all seemingly as the strikes passed by one another in motions so fast a thousand exchanges happened in a fraction of a second. Millions of shockwaves formed simultaneously in the air throughout their battle space as evasion from attack left energy hanging in the air, or blocks causes their two massive forces to exchange.

When his own arms moved up to block, he felt Beerus's foot slam into his chest in this microfraction of a moment. It was then that he saw his chance, a brief opening. Diving into his counterpart, the unified Saiyan struck the God of Destruction in the groin first with all his might. The cat's eyes bulged before Taro dove with all his weight and strength into his next blow, hitting the God of Destruction across the face. Spit shot out of his mouth of sharp teeth before the hyper speed they were moving at slowed.

All around him the world turned white as the air caught fire from all of the power which had been released. A massive white flash of fire exploded around him as Beerus's body trailed out of the zone slamming against the ground before rolling and flopping out in front of Kakarot and his boy.

Lowing himself to the ground, Taro couldn't help but smirk.

He was defeating the God of Destruction himself.

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Goku:

No way.

Everything was happening so fast. He couldn't follow any of this at all, and Gohan was still hunched over, even being unresponsive. Everything was going so strangely, and he couldn't even begin to trace the kind of energies being used. The light in the distance was being caused just by them fighting. It was remarkable. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine the kind of destruction and strength he was watching. The Earth itself might come apart soon, which would mean they'd all be dead. That included everyone, not just the fighters. It was so frustrating! It was even worse than just being a bystander to all of this.

"Whis," this Lord Beerus commented. "Ugh. I can't believe I lost that bet to you."

A mild chuckle escaped the other one, the strange blue man.

"I told you, Lord Beerus, that this Taro creature was around 26% of your total power. I did warn you. And worst of all, you just got beat by him in front of a small cadre of spectators. But this is what happens when you don't take these things seriously..." the Whis character just casually turned his head towards the white energy in the distance. "I can't recall the last time someone actually managed to be even remotely this impressive however."

Turning his eyes towards him, as in Whis staring directly at him, Goku felt him examining him thoroughly.

"Well," Beerus commented, getting up to his feet, pulling his pants a bit closer to be in place and rubbing the side of his face where the last blow landed. "I think it's time for me to destroy this planet and this creature along with it-"

D-destroy the Earth? Why?!

"Wait! No!" Goku shouted. "Please, we're just trying to survive on here. Almost everyone on the planet hasn't done anything wrong. You can't just kill everyone because you want to stop one person-"

"I actually can," Beerus commented simply. "I can really do whatever I want, come to think of it."

Think Goku, c'mon.

"This isn't your fight though," Goku urged. "At least give us a chance to stop him ourselves!"

Something curious appeared in Beerus's eye as he turned its attention to him, shifting his head a moment later, smiling broadly as he did. It was almost mockery.

"You think you and your friends? The hunched over weird boy there, the unconcious child in your arms, and an unconscious green man, are going to stop a being whose very power transcends your understanding?" he asked openly. "And you think that if you beat him, you somehow will spare your world from Destruction? You are a presumptive one, aren't you?"

"I believe his name is Son Goku, actually Lord Beerus, and he's the one who defeated Frieza," Whis commented from the side. "This world is actually very fascinating. I've even heard that it has a delectable amount of foods to pick from. From the very exotic, to the absolutely delicious."

That caught the God's attention even more than his own statement. It seemed to make him contemplate something.

"Please, just give us a chance," Goku urged.

Before he could respond, Taro appeared in front of all of them, smiling darkly.

"This will be exhilarating. I've never had to use the entirety of my strength, the whole choir, for anything before meeting you Lord Beerus. I wonder what it will feel like to kill a god of my own making."

All of his efforts to plead for the chance to save the world themselves seemed to disappear as the God of Destruction turned to face Taro once again, and smiling as before.

"You've proven yourself to be quite the nuisance. I underestimated you, and I won't be doing that any longer. Your limitations are about to become very apparent, I'm afraid to say," Beerus commented as the purple field returned to his body. "Because I know you're running at 90-95 percent of your overall power total right now. I am not."

Taro's eyes narrowed dangerously before he just smiled.

"You're bluffing."

"Am I?" Beerus asked, putting his arms behind his back. "Very well, I'll defeat you without the use of my arms. You may attack at your whim."

A furious look crossed the "creator" of this world as Taro edged dangerously closer to the being in question.

This is bad.

When Taro appeared in front of Beerus, he lunged forward into a swing of his sword, sweeping straight past Beerus as if he'd not been there. Focusing his energy into the tip of his blade, he cut backwards. Ducking down the slash cut through the air above them, cutting through the matter itself seemingly. But it passed clearly through Beerus, who didn't seem to care. He turned his head back towards Taro, who was now at his back.

"That was very impressive, for someone whose not a God."

It took only the briefest of moments before Goku heard the sharp boom of Beerus's foot cracking into Taro's sternum, shattering his Saiyan armour in a single blow.

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Turles:

What the Hell is the holdup?

They'd established the connection needed. The air around them normally was stale and dry, and the very skies themselves. But right now it was filled with crimson. Crimson energy rolled out from Garlic as he howled in pain, his blood flowing through the air as Babidi stood at the base, commanding the channelling through blood magic.

"Make it faster," Turles insisted dangerously. "I don't care if you harm the midget-"

"I'm just getting my claws into him right now," Garlic cackled. "I can sense his body, we're just making a connection!"

Another sharp scream of pain left the immortal however as Babidi prodded his fuel source, looking towards him with a sinister look in his eyes.

"Oh don't worry, we're almost there," he assured. "But I was wondering... after we're done with this, there might be more than a few other tricks I can do with-"

Scheming. More scheming that was totally unnecessary. All Turles knew was in under two Earth years, he'd be escaping this miserable place. Who cared what this midget wanted? The cold gaze he gave the wizard made him look openly frightened before turning his attention back to his spell.

"So, we just feed our power into?" Cell asked openly. "You can't just wish it to someone-"

"You pass it into Garlic," Babidi pointed out. "He's making the bridge between the world of the living and this one-"

The idea of giving Garlic his power was revolting. He was sure when Gohan figured out who his friend was on the other side, it'd make his skin crawl as well. The delighted look on Garlic's face said it all however. Clearly the little gremlin of a monster took a great deal of joy in being the lynch pin to make this all work. Revenge was a powerful motivator, it was even more powerful when you thought it might lead to some kind of liberation from this miserable, desolate nightmare.

"Well, whose first then?" King Cold's voice boomed over them all. "Do we just stand around, or do we just start?"

A red hand came up out of the crowd, releasing its energy forward.

"I will start," Dabura announced.

As soon as the flow of ki hit Garlic, his body pulsed before the bleak red and black energy began to form above him, flowing into a vessel of energy above him, crackling with power as anyone who could sense energy, sensed Son Gohan as if he were right here.

Well, that's the start of a plan.

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Beerus:

It was remarkable that this creature was so fast. Not that he was in any way faster than he was, of course. It was just very impressive given that the average mortal was very predisposed to being a fraction of his speed. And instead, even he landed another palm strike on this being's head, he knew that Taro had followed his movements the entire time. He'd even managed to block and dodge several of his attacks as well. The fact that he'd taken these blows was even more impressive. He must have hit him over a dozen times now and he was still seemingly more than capable of continuing to fight.

Swirling through the air around them and striking down, Beerus saw Taro barely shift to one side, his features becoming increasingly desperate. That was the look he was looking for. The realization that he wasn't the one in charge of this battle, he was. It was fitting because of the nature of the world itself. The Gods were above their mortal counterparts, not that he had any great love for such a system. This was a stark reminder however, of what happened when mortal creatures got out of hand. A Kai had died here, and at least one more would have had Whis and he not intervened. Kicking his leg up into the flustered Saiyan, the blow smacked into the side of his ribs, sending Taro rolling along the dried ground beneath them. He bounced, skidded, and tumbled for almost thirty metres before his body finally stopped.

The body trembled on the ground for a few moments as Beerus walked towards him, treating him as the squirming mass that he was.

"Any last words?" Beerus asked, pointing his hand, flattered and up, towards the body.

"You don't understand," Taro breathed. "You can't kill me."

"Hm," Beerus disregarded, before simplying uttering. "DESTRUCTION!"

The form on the ground vaporized into nothingness. It didn't even scream as it was plunged into complete oblivion. That meant now was the time to confront these Earthlings about their role in the universe, and why he was probably going to destroy them.

And then milkshakes. I really could go for a milkshake right now. I really should get Whis to make sure we get sandwiches as well. This lunch is going to be delicious. So delicious I can't-

The ground around him suddenly lit on fire, forming into a perfect triangle around him. The energy burned upwards as the God of Destruction stepped around several times, examining the prison he found himself in as gravity started to almost break apart. Orange bolts of energy began tracing around him before he looked up, blinking.

Somehow, Taro was floating in the air above him. The very creature he'd just Destroyed.

Well, this is surprising.

"Tri-Beam!"

In a flash of brilliant orange light, the attack came bearing down on him, contained within the firey walls of its outline. Even Beerus felt the heat and energy rip into him as he roared out in fury and anger at the attack.

When I get my hands on this Saiyan, I'll... I'LL!-

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Taro:

Breathing in and out, Taro looked at the gigantic triangular pit he'd burrowed into the Earth. Floating down to the ground, he was fully aware that this wasn't over. It was hard to catch his breath. The last time he'd felt that way... he couldn't even remember. Creating a small fold in time, creating a mirrored image of himself in another world, had paid off. Beerus had, as he expected, destroyed his reflection instead of himself. There was doubt that would work again.

How can this be happening to me? Me? I created all of this. This was meant to be my walk to greatness. They can't silence me. I can't die here. You all know that as well. This wretched cat doesn't have any place here. I have transcended being restricted to the confines of this world. You all sit there and cheer for this flawed, wretched world, but you all know deep down you want me to win. You want the creator of all of this to continue on, indefinitely, as the creator I am. I will rewrite existence. I don't care about any of these pitiful would-be creations of nothing!

But somehow this flawed, imperfect rock of a planet keeps vomiting up these problems. I didn't envision this.

In a blur of speed and anger, Beerus appeared in the air, floating above the crater. Several marks adorned his body, bruises and scratches mostly, and his yellow eyes were filled with murder.

"You know, you're the first being I've destroyed, that hasn't stayed destroyed," he said calmly. "Though I'm guessing it was more a parlour trick than anything."

There was a moment of calm between them before Beerus appeared closer to him. He saw the motion and barely got his guard up in time, but no strike came.

"I keep on referring to you as an individual, but that's not true, now is it? That's why you've become such a problem. All of those other yous inside of you, are really the strength here. I can hear their screams the same as anyone else," Beerus remarked. "Either way, I'm getting hungry, and bored, so let's-"

Taking a moment to enjoy it all, Taro opened his hand, and slapped Beerus across the face. The God of Destruction blinked, thinking as to what just happened.

"I didn't come here to bore you, you under-performing joke of a God," Taro chuckled. "I'm not afraid of-"

A sharp pain shot through his entire body before he launched back as Beerus thrust both his fists into his chest at once.

"That does it!" Beerus screamed. "No more wasting time!"

The figure zipped through the air above him, before rising further into the air.

"I'll destroy the whole planet! I didn't like this stinking rock anyway!"

Perfect, isn't it? I'll allow him to destroy this pitiful rock and I'll already be gone. I am not afraid of these fools. They can destroy what they want as I simply slip away. What a fantastic thing to view though. To see something stricken from existence. It shows me but a glimpse of what I will achieve when I erase the whole of creation and remake it in my image. To be the Destroyer and Creator. To have perfect balance. That is what it is to be a true God.

Taro smiled as he stared up at the God of Destruction, before a voice interjected.

"Lord Beerus, may I make a request?" Whis asked.

"NOT NOW WHIS! Can't you see I'm busy destroying this world and this wretched chimera of a monster?! Can't you see I'm starving for a milkshake! A sweet delicious milkshake with the most glorious chocolate poured into it, to sate my desire if only for a moment!?"

"Of course Lord Beerus, but you do recall that I won our little bet just a short moment ago," Whis commented, clearing his throat.

What is he up to?

Sitting up, Taro looked towards the Angel as he walked towards them. He'd seen him before, in the time between seconds. This creature had come to spy on him directly. The two made eye contact as a knowing look was given to him. It was almost as if this Angel knew he had a plan of some sort. Another thing not in his vision.

"Fine, FINE... what is it Whis?"

"I would propose that we allow the Earthlings an opportunity to fight this creature once more," Whis remarked. "After all, this was their fight before we intervened."

Something critical passed by Taro's features as he examined the Angelic figure float into the air next to Beerus directly. The other god stared back at him with a critical glance. Beerus gave noise to what Taro himself was thinking.

"What is the game you're playing? You know full well I will destroy this fool in mere seconds," he commented. "What could interest you so much?"

"I sense incredible things from our young and talented mortal defenders. I think they can defeat him, and it'd be delightful to watch. Besides... Lord Beerus, the Earth is filled with wondrous foods for us to eat! We can get a meal and watch the whole thing unfold. I believe this planet itself even has milkshakes," Whis commented brightly. "And if they lose, we can just destroy him our selves anyway."

"We might even destroy them anyway. This planet is extremely ugly. Who would even create such a mess?"

"I think that might just be this part of it. What with the battle taking place..."

"Well, if you say so Whis. And if you want me to forestall my plans to destroy this rock just for your own voyeurism of watching these pitiful little creates try against this thing, I am lacking a certain shake which contains milk," Beerus remarked, clearing his throat a moment later.

These two children are the gods? How could I have made a universe with such... pitiful gods?

Well... at the very least I might have time to slaughter these fools before moving on to my real goal.

Turning his eyes towards Kakarot and Gohan, Taro sensed Vegeta land behind him several dozen metres away. These three were going to be the ones to stop him? Laughable.

"Well, you two are certainly generous. I will be happy to kill these three annoying insects before we resume our fight," Taro chuckled. "After all, I would love to see you Destroy this planet. I want to see what it looks like when someone destroys something so absolutely."

Something was off however, as he looked towards Gohan and then back to Kakarot. The energy around them was changing, rapidly.

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Goku:

This is it. This is our chance.

Placing Goten down next to Piccolo, Goku breathed in and out. The Kais had completely disappeared. Piccolo was down, and Goten was out. Gohan looked like he was in rough shape too. It was Vegeta and himself, and that was all that was left. Vegeta stared at him over Taro's shoulder as the warrior started to rise to his feet.

"For all the universes you've ruined, and all the people you've killed, we're going to stop you," Goku declared. "You're not going to hurt anyone else."

"You realize that there are billions of me, don't you?" Taro chuckled. "Scattered out across time and space. Every world I leap into, makes yet another. Whatever you accomplish here, beyond your own death, will be forgotten either when I kill you and destroy this world... or when I bring about an end to all time, and rebuild this world in the vision it should have been."

"You realize you sound crazy, right?" Beerus commented from above.

"I'm not the mad one here. I'm the only thing that's real," Taro chuckled back, not even acknowledging the God.

Breathing in and out several times, Goku sent a thought to Vegeta.

"Vegeta. We need to try for the Spirit Bomb. That's the only way I can think of where we might be able to get enough power. We'd need it from more than just the Earth though. I'll talk to King Kai, and see if we can connect with The Supreme Kais. If they can get everyone to chip in, it might be enough."

"I can't buy you that much time, Kakarot," Vegeta stated honestly. "A few minutes at best."

"Get me whatever you can," Goku sent back.

"It's awful," Gohan finally breathed, coughing as a red aura started to surround him.

Watching his son's arms started to tremble, Goku was quick to rush to his side. Glowing cracks of blackened energy rippled over his frame as the eldest Saiyan blinked, placing his hand on his shoulder. Something was happening, and he wasn't sure what. What had all of this been about? He watched as Gohan coughed again, this time black vomit coming up and spilling onto the ground in front of him. How did a ghost get sick? What was even happening?

Another pulse of red energy rolled off his body as Gohan started to seemingly gain strength, getting up off his hands and looked at him, he could see his eyes had turned entirely black.

"What's happening?"

"Made a deal," Gohan coughed before looking ahead to Taro. "Let's see how he likes it."

How he likes it?

A wave of red energy rolled off him once again before an aura appeared. Red and black power burst from his body before Goku felt it spike. It was immense, and all he could do was stand back as the waves of force rolled over him. Dust kicked up into the air before it began circling around him violently. Fire scorched through the air before his muscles tightened. Ki was flowing in from somewhere, and he couldn't tell at all.

Taking two steps forward, his son's aura emitted an energy field of blackened energy. The sphere rolled around him as blackened lightning rippled along the edge of the sphere. It was growing, wildly. Inside of it he could sense hundreds, no thousands of energy signatures running through it. The first he recognized was Frieza's father, and then Raditz, and Cell? Every other villain he thought he'd ever faced seemed to rush though, and thousands more. It was intense. The air around them felt the pressure of the new power rising and all Goku could do was step back and feel his jaw drop.

Made a deal? Let's see how he likes it? He's... he's channelling all of the dead warriors from Hell? How?

A far too familiar energy was at the core of all of it. He could almost taste Garlic junior's energy out of the air and his own face twisted in revulsion.

The wind picked up from the core of the orb, blasting him back as he raised his hands, jumping back and grabbing Piccolo, hoisting him over his shoulder, before slinging Goten under his arm.

Within a second of him doing so, he heard Gohan's voice come screaming out of the middle of it all. A howl that echoed even more loudly than Taro's energy did. The black orb shattered before Gohan's aura turned to Gold, and his field of energy exploded around him. The familiar sound of an Ascended Super Saiyan transformation filled the air. Whatever was happening, Goku could sense the immensity of the power now floating in a small crater. Huge boulders began lifting out of the ground all around him just from his very presence. The dark nature of this power left Goku nervous, but there was something that was true of everything right now. Desperate times, called for desperate measures.

It wasn't half as strong as Taro, but it was enormous. Landing not far away, holding Piccolo and Goten still, Goku just stared on in shock as Gohan took several steps forward, and all he could see was a furious sneer and snarl appearing on Taro's features.

"Another ploy? Another trick? Another cheap way out? Another way to waste my time?!" Taro screamed, his own aura flickering. "Is that what this is Gohan? I don't even care about you."

It was then that Goku noticed something else, Gohan's power, even if gradually, was still growing.

Whatever's happening, this is crazy.

"You came here and killed Trunks, a God, and tried to kill my family and everyone else. You threw the lives of your own siblings away," Gohan concluded. "You're a monster. Even the other monsters hate you. I'm going to stop you."

"Oh you are the worst Gohan I've ever seen. I can sense all of those beasts in you. Dabura, Cell, Garlic, and a so many others. I can even sense my father's power. You're still nothing to me. I'll enjoy correcting the mistake I made when I first graced this world," Taro chuckled. "In fact, when I rebuild all of space and time to my vision, I'll make sure that in your next life, I'll be sure to make your life just as miserable as it is now! You're all nothing but toys for me to play with."

Bracing himself for a confrontation, Goku saw Taro assume a new, more aggressive stance.

"After all... there is no you, there is only me."

Straightening out his own stance, and briefly making eye contact with him, Gohan nodded to him, trying to imply that he could engage in something.

The Spirit Bomb! Right!

Turning his attention back just as Goku dropped Goten and Piccolo, Gohan cracked his neck from side to side before finishing his position. Raising his hands into the air, Goku slowly started to concentrate on everything, beyond just this world even. The whole galaxy, even beyond.

It was just before the first strike, Goku heard only one thing said.

"Well, let's see what happens when the only being in existence, gets sent to Hell."

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Author's Notes:

Oh man. I'm kinda excited I actually got this done so soon. Only one chapter left to go. It's also all about the build. I did the Hell saga to kinda introduce characters and build up their own small journeys to this point. Cell, Garlic, Dabura, Turles, Babidi, King Cold, they all have these roles in this and how it all comes together. Then we've got all of Gohan's build as well. Goku and Vegeta get lots of building in this, especially Vegeta. Junia, some point caught on, got spared by Vegeta.

So, one last chapter in the Saga.

I also hope people liked Beerus and Whis. They aren't done yet either, they still have some stuff to add, but its mainly side stuff this saga.

Just need to finish one more chapter. Lol

Also, 2,000 reviews! Thank you everyone for following the story for so long. And thank you everyone for showing me what you think!

Also, music wise, near the end when Gohan is changing, I imagine its going along to Prayerby Disturbed. I also found myself again heavily influenced by VAST in a lot of scenes, namely for Taro. Pretty When You Cry, Three Doors, Touched, and a host of others. I've also been listening to a lot of Metric for different scenes, same as last time almost always for Junia's scenes. I also had a few other songs, mainly from Nine Inch Nails and a few others.

So yea. I'll catch you guys next time. I did my best proofreading, but well, you guys know I'm pretty trash at that. Especially on bigger chapters like this.

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Reviews:

TaitanoRules555: It's not planned. I might make reference to it in the epilogue. lol

Pyromania101: He is definitely morally worse than Zamasu. Taro's completely fucking bonkers, and wants to destroy literally all reality, everywhere, so he can become God. Hell, he thinks he is God, so anything he does is justified. It's not even that he thinks he's god, its more profound then that. Yea, he's completely batshit.

Kacarrot: I won't go into the defeat, but Taro's defeat will hopefully be epic. Also, I'm glad you're lying this, lol.

Perfect Carnage: Impossible! Totally bonkers! Yea, the SSG ritual would have been helpful. But at least Gohan has the forces of Hell at his back, right? :P

Hek'UnnSkipper: It was always apart of the plan to have Beerus show up in this saga. It also gives more options for him to show up later too.

Masvan: Did I answer this by PM? I think I did.

Guest1: He knows about it because of the Trunks he's eaten.

TrentBttl: He did pretty okay. I guess.

Megacharizat: It's complicated. There will be more exploration of Videl and Gohan's characters, but I'm not prepared to say their going to be a couple. Because Gohan's done something pretty heinous to her. People don't just get over that.

Luke: And Beerus got in on the action :)

Blades of Fury: Utopia is the "world" which Turles and Vegeta come from, who are the parents of the trio characters.

Guest2: I don't... really want to answer much to this one. Power level numbers don't mean much to me. People have standings with one another. And I think its ridiculous to scale power the way you are, when Dragonball is grossly inconsistent. And these numbers are just things magazines and people genuinely pull out of their ass. Given that post-Buu Vegeta, after Bulma got slapped, managed to hurt Beerus, even mildly, kinda shows power levels are bullshit.

Guest3: Thanks very much. My new job really hurts my writing time, so I'm glad I got this done for you guys. Also, I aim to be at the very least hard to predict. I suspect the ending of the overall story will surprise a lot of people. Hell, the saga after the next one is gonna be one hell of a surprise.

Brelic: Thanks!

Super Mystic Gohan: Thanks a bunch.

Guest4: He ate a Trunks who knew about them.

Guest5: Vegito did pretty okay. For a bit. Lol

G: I did!

DBZfan the first: Delivered another.

Tip: I hope his fight was up to expectations. There wasn't quite as much fighting this chapter, but the power disparity was real high.

Guest6: Sadly, there is no future Pan in the story. Future Gohan in this story, super died before he could even hope to concieve. He likely would have just killed everyone.

Ziltoid: Z sword? WHOOPS... cough what Z sword? :D

FireFnBrimstone: I hope you didn't predict anything that happened this chapter, lol

Guest7: Huzzah!

GoHaNViDelSoN: Review number 2000 folks!

Guest8: I've never watched FMA. I don't even know whot that is. Lol

Guest9: I teased you a bit this chapter, lol

Guest10: Dark? What's dark about it? Lol

Guest11: All the content that's not released, I consider to be more a template given how my writing style has changed over the years. :\ And the story's basically dead at this point.