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 78: Reminded

Salza:

Whatever that creature had been, Lord Cooler had been the only one who could confront it. Even now, breathing in the stale, dead air around the Tree of Might, he was shocked that anything had managed to stop such a being. Its power had been more than anything he could have imagined. Even the records of the Super Saiyan on Planet Earth and Namek were nothing compared to what was demonstrated. The 22nd generation main computer aboard the main cruiser had exploded before the fight had even begun. Hosts of troops had died in the engagement. Whatever these armour-clad warriors were on, it was something a level beyond anything most of their troops had. Just to fight their base level soldiers, Doore, Nazi, and himself had to step in before most of their own men were completely slaughtered, and even they were getting outclassed quickly.

If they'd not been consuming the extract from the Tree of Might for almost a year, they'd have all died in moments, that much Salza was entirely sure of.

The cooling dead body laying on one of the great roots of the tree had a look of horror etched in her face, the sizzling hole in her chest from where the death beam had penetrated was still something, he found hard to imagine. Even Lord Cooler must have been concerned with what this thing had told them.

"I am but one of many. We are legion. The All-Mother will never be defeated."

Those were her last words after Lord Cooler had finished with her. This withered rock had outlived its usefulness in any situation, but now they were beginning to understand just what was coming. This was why so many outlying planets to the galaxy's south-west were going dark. Undoubtedly, independent worlds were suffering the same fate as well. These creatures had demanded subservience the moment they'd come into contact with them, barking on like fanatics in battle and seemingly having near fear until the end.

Their leader stared down Lord Cooler without any fear at all, before their confrontation, all the way to her last moments here on the sprawling roots of the Tree of Might.

"Salza," Cooler's voice cut off his own thoughts as he felt his heart skip a beat as the lord of the Galaxy make remark. "Begin operations to find any survivors and recover our own. If any of these Legionaries are found alive, kill them slowly."

Immediately covering his chest with one arm in salute, Salza nodded in obedience.

"As you command, Lord Cooler," he remarked quickly. "I will see to this task without hesitation."

Turning towards the other haggard survivors of the Cooler-Force and Armoured Squadron, Salza pointed towards the worst parts of the battlefield.

"Find any survivors! Kill any of the scum and bring any of our survivors to the cruiser!" he shouted, before taking off the ground and flying low to the ground.

The battlefield was awash in bodies, and much to his chagrin, there were three of theirs for everyone one of theirs. Worse still, Lord Cooler had been the one to dispatch almost all of the adversaries truthfully, with the Armoured Squadron doing all of the remaining damage. His first surveillance came back without anyone. A second pass through found one survivor for the area of land he was scouting. It was armoured in the Legion armour of their foes.

The woman was crawling, her useless legs dragging behind her. A deathbeam had punctured her lower back, leaving her spine severed. She was entirely out of ki as well, according to the scouter. Her body crawled like an infant, desperately trying to reach another corpse of one of their comrades.

"Lag, you've gotta… you've gotta get up," he heard through gagged, self deluded words. "No Legion has… ever… lost… we can't… we can't be… the first…"

That was interesting, now wasn't it? Landing beside her, Salza crossed his arms and gave a half smirk, looking down with the arrogance he'd learned over the years he'd been at the side of Lord Cooler. His power and unmatched, always, save for when in proximity to Lord Cooler. Except for when he ran into these things. Or whenGohan had been around. The Saiyan attack dog who Cooler used up, and then disposed of. He'd given the Saiyan friendly advice not to overachieve, but monkeys were slow learners, 'unfortunately'.

"Pitiful," Salza said, kicking the woman in the side.

A horrible shriek escaped its lips before it rolled onto its side, looking up at him with pleading eyes. He wasn't sure if they were eyes pleading for mercy, or something else. Honestly, he couldn't tell or know, and after the bizarre behaviour of some of these creatures, he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

Reaching her trembling hand out, she just gasped.

"Wait!" she wheezed. "You don't understand. We're here to help you!"

That was enough to give the final scoff from Salza, he opened his palm as golden light emerged a moment later. A flash of light and a scream were all that remained of the warrior a moment later, and even those rapidly faded to nothing. A few more blasts emerged in the distance, but for the most part, these problems were being dealt with.

The only problem is, if these are just a fraction of them… how could we hope to stop an armada of them?

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Cooler:

The hovering chair which Cooler resided in while in a more relaxed state, was cast aside and left floating on the other side of the bridge. The lone figure stood there, his face reflecting back on him. This was a problem, a very big problem. The only beings in the universe he felt could kill him would have been the Saiyan's on Earth, and those creatures would be dealt with in due time. All of the power he'd amassed from training, and consuming and distributing the fruit from the Trees of Might he'd planed across dozens, if not soon to be hundreds of worlds, This creature hadn't managed to best his base form, but he could already tell this was just a fraction of what was out there.

There were others, of increasing power and severity, that much he was sure of. Attacks across the galaxy were already underway, and outposts had been going dark for months now. This was going to be something that needed to be dealt with. Ironically, his ability to bolster his power was based in empire being in place. The Corporation could only seed so many planets with the Tree of Might based off stability. Intervening personally would be an extreme risk to himself, and his plan to dominate the universe itself.

It reminded him of his most common way of dealing with problems when they emerged.

Bojack and Babidi.

Those two were the first things to come to mind. The Space Pirate's power had far superseded his own, but it was just a matter of seeding the right information to make that problem go away. Babidi's incursions had been made to look for Earth, and Cooler was more than happy to provide that information to him. The tried and true method of problem solving was very much in his view. Better yet, it'd allow him to send teams to observe what happened on the planet and get an accurate gauge of his enemies' true power. Right now, he was unsure of where he stood among the giants of this galaxy, but he knew his potential for growth was now the most powerful in the universe.

Looking over the 3-D map of the galaxy which was summoned forth in front of him, Cooler's red eyes scanned it, looking at all the avenues of approach these creatures would be taking. If outposts in the south west were dying, then that meant that he would need to cut off a section of his empire in the most ruthless way to guide his enemies to where he wanted them to be. Already, his mind shifted to the number of inhabited worlds, and the number of important uninhabited stations. Only a few would have time for evacuation, but he estimated that a total of 47 worlds in his pocket would need to be sacrificed for his plan, with a further 205 worlds which were not in the corporation's reach. That would funnel the aliens towards the only remaining world that could be in their path. It would take staggered timing as well, destroying systems before they arrived by several days, but giving them no reprieve to change course.

Then, there would be no choice but to arrive at the world he wanted them to.

Earth.

"Problems developing?" the Kai's voice emerged from behind him, Abaddon's tone being almost grating for him to hear. For now, he still needed the God, but he was more than interested in silencing that voice forever when he got the chance.

Problems developing. This thing had some nerve talking to him that way. When he looked at the Kai who'd been dealing with him, Cooler was so furious he almost let his outer appearance slip into the rage he felt within. But for now, he needed to remain level, he needed to remain cool. Closing his eyes for a moment, he just breathed in and out, calming himself down before his eyes opened again, staring at the one who'd given him the means of increasing his strength so substantially.

"Worlds which belong to my empire and corporation are being assaulted by an external force. It is ruining my plans for the Earth. I hope this isn't your doing, bringing another threat to this galaxy to exact revenge upon the Saiyans. If so, we may have a more formal dispute."

The Kai seemed to grow quiet as he seemed to look at one side for a moment, before his eyes flashed with surprise, and even alarm. The Kais were weak, as far as Cooler was concerned, however there was a real moment of confusion and disarray on the Kai's face that managed to make Cooler himself uncomfortable.

"The current Supreme Kai and God of Destruction have been very… careless… to have allowed that to continue to flourish," Abaddon said with almost a silent tone before he turned his eyes towards him. "That is a threat to all creation. A perversion of the will of the gods."

Cooler almost scoffed before walking past the Kai, looking out over the great expanse of the stars before him on the bridge of his cruiser. Every glint of light in the heavens were to be his possession one day, that much he was sure of. This creature, this abomination, would be something he would merely discard through the Earth, and if not, he would gather more than enough strength as it was distracted by the Saiyans, so that he would once more come out on top.

Everything would fall in place for him. Running headlong into trouble was something his brother would have done. Cooler understood that he needed to plan his attacks very carefully.

"You'll be happy to know then, that I have a plan for dealing with this threat," Cooler remarked, smiling as he turned his head towards the Kai. "And it may partially solve your other pressing issue at that."

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Abaddon:

A plan of dealing with the threat?

The inner tone of Abaddon's mind was more than irritated. Cooler's plan seemed to be to destroy hundreds of worlds, and funnel these aliens into the home of the Saiyans. This was more than conflicting with his original views of how to solve the problem. Destruction of whole worlds as a means of luring their enemies into fighting one another was almost insane. All of those planets under the care of the Gods, destroyed for one creature's worry over a situation that could be managed by other means.

But it was already too late. This was his last, best hope for stopping the monsters he'd unleashed to the world. At least the ones from the other times would be getting sent home in due time by the Supreme Kai of Time. Worst of all, his nature as a Kai was to try and protect the things created by the Gods. He wanted to create and protect, his want to destroy the Saiyans was to protect everyone from them, and to protect humanity, one creation he had a hand in as well, from them. But now things were spiraling out of his hands and he could feel it.

Cooler would kill billions in his plan to turn this monster, the All-Mother, towards the Saiyans. Worse still, whatever this monstrosity was, a creature from beyond this galaxy, there was a high chance that the people of Earth could be annihilated with her arrival. All of his plots, all of his plans, were intertwining in such a way that sacrifices he never intended to be made, were being made. The role of the Kais were to create, and to use creation to solve their problems, but instead he now wished he could do as the God of Destruction, and just wave his hand towards this madness and make it go away.

And as this happens, the other Gods do nothing. Neither the destroyer, or the Supreme Kai. They would condemn me for my acts, but they themselves are the ones who allowed this to fester. They force me to act, and look what that has wrought. Time and time again. From the creation of the Saiyans to now.

All of the suffering he'd caused by creating them in the first place, was being visited on so many once again to remove the last whispers of the threat. Worse still however, he was genuinely unsure of this new threat.

Isolated from the other Gods, Abaddon now looked out upon the stars alone, standing on the surface of Earth's moon. His memories of this place were so recent in his mind. It had been here that he'd condemned creations started far older than his own birth to a miserable death, not even at the hands of the Destroyer.

All I wanted to do was the right thing.

He could sense whatever this thing was in the distance, he could feel its energy approaching this direction. It would be Cooler's men who would begin the destruction of so many lush worlds. The Saiyans were responsible for annihilating thousands of worlds, ironically in the service of Frieza's family. The problem was, Frieza's family had limited ambition. The Saiyan instinct to fight and improve was innate to their beings. They would one day rise to challenge the Gods themselves, and were a threat to every other species in existence.

He knew something the Saiyans didn't. There were no such things as Half-Saiyans. Lineages separated thousands of years ago simply merged, and what made Saiyans, Saiyan, was inherited by the humans. In enough time, the humans would become the Saiyans. They would be as self destructive as before as well, spreading their violence internally, before they lashed out as the galaxy as a whole, only this time Frieza wouldn't be there to curtail them and bend them to his purpose. Would the Gods? Given enough time… given enough time he knew the Gods themselves would be surpassed by these weapons he'd created. That left a cold lump in the depths of his stomach as he realized the grim, dark truth…

One had just destroyed any semblance of order across billions of realities, in the long scheme of things.

On the edge of his mind, a comparatively small power, seemingly out of place… it dwelt on the edges of the domain between the realms of the living and the dead. His mind was only drawn to it as he investigated Cooler's power, ironically. There was a dark heart pulsating, growing, but few but a God could sense it. When his eyes looked to the side as he was left alone with his thoughts, he knew exactly what was out of place.

Interesting.

His mind reached out, tapping into the ki in the distance, it's still, unliving mind immediately lashed out at him, its guise being discovered. Clearly, it was trying to conceal itself, and was doing so badly. It was enough to make the God smile though as he held onto his own staff, patiently lowering his head as he closed his eyes.

You appear to be out of your cage, animal. One really should be more cautious once they've achieved the impossible.

There was nothing but seething rage spat back at him, the flailing mind trying desperately to receded itself further, but they both knew it was too late for that.

"I am not going back there," it snarled. "I'll rip you to pieces and dance in your blood if you try."

Such threats from a lesser being, but one who had its uses. Already, Abaddon had felt himself losing control of the leash he'd felt he had Cooler on, much as Garlic had slipped his leash as well. But what if the answer wasn't for him to be lording over all, holding a tightened leash to try and keep the mortals in line? What if the answer was to manage the conflicts between mortal beings? Certainly, this couldn't work with the Saiyans.

But with beings such as this… there might be potential.

I'm not going to send you anywhere. I just find it curious that you are so out of place. Given what you've done, I hardly see them letting you out. And there is no escape from the realm beneath the clouds, as I'm sure you know. I do wonder though, how long can you conceal yourself before they find you? A few months? A few weeks? I found you, and you can't have been free long.

"How do you know me?" it hissed back. "Who are you?"

The smile returned to his lips as his hand reached to the top of his own staff, almost leaning on it before he pulled it up.

I am your friend. I am someone whom shares common enemies, and perhaps even common allies.

"Oh?" the voice responded, more amused. "Tell me more, oh being of mystery. Who might these enemies be?"

His response was simple enough, stringing this creature along only had some benefits. It was time to begin laying things on the table, as it were.

The Saiyans, of course. I believe they have created more than a few problems for you, haven't they?

"Saiyans," the voice squired furiously. "Once I find a way out of this realm, I will make them all suffer for what they've done to me."

Yes, this was going to be perfect.

I am sure that I can help you, on behalf of your brother. I will need to help you conceal yourself for the moment… Frieza.

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Author's Notes:

Lots going on. I work tons atm. When not working I've been doing some painting, and my overall schedule outside of work has just been really busy. Obviously, as demonstrated above, I'm still writing, but releases are going to slow down until later in November, and then they're going to be slow until the New Year. It's just the way things need to be at the moment.

I was going to write a segment from Frieza's perspective, but I think the last line is just something really good to end the chapter on.

Beyond that, next chapter we're going to be getting back to the people on Earth. Things are progressing nicely. There are a few scenes I've had planned for YEARS that will be appearing in the 80's, and I'm really excited to get to them.

So, the last 2 chapters were to just give some updates on what's happening around the universe and setup things to come.

I also can't wait to get back to writing Pan and Videl, that's gonna be great.

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Reviewers:

Blades of Fury: Pan's with Piccolo now.

Perfect Carnage: I'm aiming for some nuance, but things are going to be slowly revealed for Gaia and her crew. They've got an interesting story, that much I can promise.

Thomas-The-TMC: Answered by PM.

Hek'UnnSkipper: I hope this cleared things up.

Reallallday1243: It's coming! I dunno if that's a good or a bad thing though, lol.

Super Mystic Gohan: Gohan meeting Cooler again is going to be incredibly fun. He's the last person who helped damn him, who hen never confronted.

Navarone2013: OC characters. They've got a saga for themselves appearing in the 90's sometime. It all comes together, I promise :)

Maximussj: Cooler is definitely a big fish in this story. His saga, more than any others, will need to be handled with care. I'm working on some setpiece moments for his big confrontation.

KagariAsuha: I never wanna write throw-away characters, that is a disservice to the audience, and the story. :)

Iikd: Poor Gohan. Really, anytime I think that though, I just need to listen to JUST by Radiohead, lol.

Dbzfan the First: Thanks!

Guest1: Yep! Reminded is totally the name from a major song from the English dub of Movie 5. :) The Cooler buildup chapters which are going to trickle out, are all named for (and somewhat based around) the themes from that movie.

TheItchyCocoon: Cooler was given the tree of Might seeds by Abaddon. They are now harvesting it, on an industrial scale.

Yasho360: We are definitely not at the Cooler Saga yet, lol.

JayDonJohnson211: I'm trying my best to keep it all gravy, good, and consistent. Lol

RoxaShadow: The ideology is going to be expanded on. It's the real focus of the upcoming Saga, once we spend a good, long time on the Earth with our cast.

Narelclollie: Thanks!