King
Chapter 23: Given and Taken
Without missing a beat, Master Roshi collected the small rice cooker laid out on the ring in front of him and stuffed it into his robes. All around him, people were running around confused and concerned- the announcer looked lost in the flurry of activity happening in the crowds and the ring. Master Roshi strode over to Tien, who stood watchfully over Kakarot's body. He looked displeased.
'You knew, then,' Master Roshi addressed Tien, as he bent over Kakarot's prone form. 'I'm surprised you recognized the technique.'
'Barely- I doubt even Shen knew what that was.'
'Then how did you recognize it?'
'Your ki- it felt like you were destroying it. Your body was literally killing itself trying to resist that. I could tell that, whatever you were doing, it would kill you…' Tien trailed off, then shot his head to the side. 'Great.'
Shen had climbed over the barrier separating the stands and the ring and was stomping over to them. 'I thought you were ready for this, Tien,' he snarled, 'but I was clearly wrong. Your lack of respect and your explicit violations of my orders show that you're still that same, sniveling whelp I took in all those years ago.' Tien and Shen glared at each other before Shen broke off, sounding a note of disgust as he whirled to face Kakarot's body. 'Though I suppose I should thank you,' he said, lifting one finger towards Kakarot, 'for clearing the way for me…'
Just as a thin, gold beam shot out of Shen's finger, Tien gripped Shen's arm and wrenched it upwards, forcing the beam into the sky. Master Roshi had been prepared to do the same- but Tien had acted quicker. Perhaps he expected his master to do something… or maybe I've found someone who has truly surpassed me, Master Roshi briefly reflected.
A small frown spreading across his face, Tien's disappointment for his master was clear. 'I can't believe I revered you, revered your brother. You would kill an unconscious opponent? Your cowardice is truly limitless.' Tien held his grip on Shen a few moments longer, demonstrating his superior strength, then released him. Shen recoiled away, holding his wrist.
'You are banished from the Crane School!' Shen yelled, shaking with rage. 'You are never to enter my sight for as long as your pitiful existence lasts!' Lacking anything else to say, Shen spun on his heels and walked off the ring. As he was walking back into the main tournament building- the crowd was caught up in impenetrable chaos- Chiaotzu intercepted him. From a distance, Tien could see Shen's expression brighten, then tighten, then turn with anger. He angrily gesticulated at Chiaotzu, and then resumed his storming away.
Chiaotzu came up to Tien and Master Roshi; the old master was watching the announcer be swarmed by tournament organizers, who were all frantically consulting each other over whether the correct championship call, according to the rules, had been made. The announcer grew more and more self-conscious with every passing second.
Amongst this, Tien said to Chiaotzu, 'I assumed Shen tried to get you to fight me.'
The pale fighter nodded. 'I can't believe we had any respect for that guy…'
'Well, to be fair, he did teach us a lot of good techniques.'
Master Roshi turned away from the squabbling officials to face Tien and Chiaotzu. 'I understand that you two allowed one of my students to be harmed,' he said, stone-faced. As he spoke, he relaxed his ki and his body shrank back to its normal proportions. 'Do you have anything to say for your actions?'
Tien and Chiaotzu glanced at each other. 'We're sorry,' Chiaotzu said, 'and we know nothing we do or say will make up for what we did. But… we refuse to act out Shen's or anyone else's wishes, and we promise to never again harm any of you.'
Master Roshi regarded them for a few moments, then nodded his head. 'If I understand Shen and the traditions of the Crane School well enough, then you choosing not to kill Kakarot- I believe that you two wish no more harm. I can't say anything on behalf of my students- whether or not they'll understand the gravity of your intentions- but I accept your apology.'
Tien seemed to sigh, as if releasing a day's worth of tension. 'Okay. That's good to hear.' He looked over at Kakarot, who remained unconscious on the floor of the ring. 'So; what do we do now?'
'You mean,' Master Roshi said with a grin, prodding an uncomfortable Tien towards the gaggle of arguing tournament officials, 'what are you going to do now. As much as I would love to be the World's Strongest yet again, I have more important business to tend to right now. And, if I remember the rules correctly, if the champion refuses the title, it goes to the runner-up.'
'I disqualified myself by intervening. So that would make… either Kakarot or Krillin the champion. You can't be seriously thinking-'
Master Roshi held up one finger, silencing Tien. 'Kakarot will not receive the title because he is unconscious. Age-old rule of the World Tournament- an unconscious person can't win anything, not even by forfeit or disqualification. And even though you intervened in my match with Kakarot, if anyone should be disqualified, it should be me for receiving outside help. Your actions arguably made it harder for you to win the tournament by ending the match quicker for one fighter, leaving them with more energy for the final.'
'So, if what you're saying is true, then- which means- if I beat Krillin-' Tien's eyes widened.
Master Roshi's grin widened as Tien connected the dots. 'You have a title to claim, champ, once I walk off this stage to talk with my students. The rest will be left to you.
'But- but I-' Tien stammered, 'I really don't want to-'
'No buts! The most pressing matter right now is for me to consult my students about what to do with Kakarot, and I can't do that as long as these baboons behind me,' he gestured with one thumb over his shoulder,' are trying to give me bundles of Zeni! You need to do this, Tien!'
Tien gulped, eyeing the mass of clamoring tournament officials roiling with outrage in front of him. This felt more challenging that every fight he's fought in his life combined. 'Okay,' he relented, 'fine.'
'Good!' Master Roshi said, clapping a hand on Tien. Master Roshi then moved away and crouched down to whisper in Chiaotzu's ear. 'Keep an eye on him,' Master Roshi said, watching Tien step forward, 'keep an eye on both of them.'
The tall Crane fighter approached the tournament officials and explained the rules procedure as Master Roshi had conveyed it to him. He got blank stares in response. 'Nothing of what you just said is in the rulebook!' one of the officials finally said. 'Get Jackie Chun back over here!'
Tien turned, 'Okay, he's-' but Master Roshi was gone, having left incredibly fast after speaking to Chiaotzu. Tien groaned in unison with the tournament officials.
Krillin and Rayne were awed as Master Roshi came to them, bare-chested, beaten, but still very much alive. 'You're… that's- you're incredible!' Krillin exclaimed, unable to hold back his excitement. 'Master Roshi…' he couldn't finish- he was speechless. Eyes wide, Rayne kept looking over at the old man, as if trying to reconcile the idea that Jackie Chun was Master Roshi and vice versa. 'So the last tournament too- jeez...' she said, shaking her head in disbelief.
Master Roshi smiled at them, then took them by their shoulders and led them towards the infirmary. 'Come, my pupils. We need to talk- we all need to talk- about what we're going to do with Kakarot. Then, at last, we can rest.'
Barring the arena, the tournament grounds, as was their walk, was silent.
0o0o0
A buzz went off at Bulma's side. 'Huh.' she said, glancing at the device. 'Okay, this is worrying.'
Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Puar had remained sitting in the stands, letting the rest of the crowd roil around them. They were lucky that they had been seated behind Master Roshi during his beam clash with Kakarot. Some of them were still trying to come to grips with it. 'So much power…' Chi-Chi was muttering every minute or so.
Bulma shook her out of her stupor. 'We've got trouble, Chi-Chi. Someone is attacking West City!'
'What? Who? Why?'
'I don't know- about any of those questions! But we need to tell the others! Come on!' Bulma yanked Chi-Chi by her good arm, grabbed Puar by her tail, and began pushing through the unruly crowd. Elbows were thrown, bodies were shoved, but Bulma wouldn't be denied and was making steady progress through the crowd. Halfway out of the stands, Chi-Chi yelped, saying, 'Something's happening Bulma- Master Roshi's power level just shot up- we need to hurry!' With Chi-Chi's worried help, they cleared through the crowd in no time, emerging at the end of the stands close to the rest of the tournament grounds. They ducked into the main building- 'this way, they're this way!'- and followed Chi-Chi's directing.
They emerged onto the main pavilion, seeing Krillin, Rayne, and Master Roshi climbing onto a yellow cloud- odd enough as that was, they were very clearly rushing. Because Master Roshi was the first one to climb on, he looked around- and made pained eye contact with Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Puar. No time for misery, he thought. I'm sorry.
'West City! It's-!' Bulma yelled.
'We're going.' Master Roshi cut in, 'and bring as many people as you can. We have to assume the worst- someone is making for the dragonballs.' With the cloud fully loaded, Master Roshi gripped something intangible and yelled, 'NIMBUS, GO!' The cloud responded immediately and accelerated up and away, zooming at an impressive speed away from the island. As they ascended, Bulma couldn't ignore the haunting gazes Rayne and Krillin shot back at her. I... what happened?
'Bulma,' Chi-Chi said at a whisper at Bulma's side once the cloud had disappeared, 'I can't sense Yamcha…'
0o0o0
Out of curiosity, King Piccolo had taken the ridiculous vehicle his liberators had possessed and had driven it off the nearest cliff. Floating in mid-air, he saw the car plummet to the ground and explode in an impressive fireball. Noting this, Piccolo landed at the edge of the cliff and took in the view. Then, he extended one hand and shot a blast to the ground below. An explosion easily twice as large as the previous one consumed a patch of forest, light illustrating the macabre expression on the demon's face.
Satisfied with his current power, Piccolo set himself to work. After a few hours of preparation and meditation, he expended his ki giving birth to three eggs. From the first one emerged a dinosaur-like creature, scrawny and with a small stature- though still powerful with ki. Piano, as King Piccolo would name him, was granted all the knowledge King Piccolo possessed.
While they were waiting for the two other eggs to hatch, Piano drew on his inherited memories and asked, 'My lord, if I may ask- why did you kill the two who released you? They seemed rightly terrified of you- perhaps they could have been valuable assets to us?'
'They knew of the rice cooker-,' Piccolo answered, his deep voice of a timbre much lower than his spawn's, 'of that potentiality. I couldn't let them live with such direct knowledge of the nature of my imprisonment.
'Then very good, my lord.'
The Demon King Piccolo regarded his newly born son, amused. 'Yes, you can't say anything other than that, can you? I didn't create you to say anything else.'
'Say what, my lord?'
King Piccolo chuckled to himself. 'Nevermind.'
Another hour or so passed, and the second egg hatched. This spawn was significantly larger than Piano, muscled and nimble, green-scaled like a lizard. Tambourine crouched beneath King Piccolo, sensing an imminent command.
'Go to the World Martial Arts Tournament,' King Piccolo said, placing one hand on his newly born spawn's head, 'and kill as many finalists as you can without being discovered. We will leave the eventual, larger confrontation, for later.'
Tambourine nodded, then unfurled from his back two wide, veiny wings. A few flaps of them and he rose into the air, looking like some sort of malicious gargoyle.
King Piccolo watched his son depart, then turned back towards Piano. 'It is time we moved. Do you sense what is in that direction,' he said, pointing towards the area beyond the cliff edge, 'my son?'
'Yes my lord- it feels like a sizable human settlement.'
'Correct. It is that and more.' A wicked grin spread across King Piccolo's wrinkled, sagging face. 'Let's change that.'
Picking up the third egg in his hands, Piano lifted off the ground and followed King Piccolo eastwards.
0o0o0
Master Roshi was deadly silent as the three of them- himself, Krillin, and Rayne- flew over the rolling, green plains below them. A farm here and there would be sewn into this endless tapestry of succeeding scenes, then disappear as quickly as it appeared.
Krillin couldn't do anything else except listlessly watch the land run by beneath him. He couldn't wrap his head around what was happening. Yamcha is dead. Actually dead. He felt exhausted in every sense of the word- his physical strength had deserted him by the end of his fight with Tien; then his mind had crumpled and fallen to lay next to Yamcha's corpse.
He replayed that moment over and over in his head, the scene startlingly nightmarish in every remembrance. It was such a cliche- such a tragedy- when the heroes discovered their friend had been killed while their backs were turned dealing with another threat. It was disturbing; they had no idea Yamcha had died until they literally laid eyes on his unbreathing body. Kakarot had consumed their attention so thoroughly, acting as a poison that had seized every capacity of their minds.
'This is what we're dealing with,' Master Roshi had pronounced as he stood over the body, with the hardest look Krillin had ever seen dominating his face, 'the whims of an absolute monster. The Demon King Piccolo.' Krillin had the faintest, more remote sense of what that name conjured- terror, death, fear- but its meaning was so old that it had lost all acuity and relevance. It was a myth he had once heard the older monks at the Orin Temple discuss, before turning to more stupid and mundane topics. "The Demon King Piccolo" being mentioned in the same sentence as dirty laundry had a way of diminishing its importance.
Krillin knew better now. One look at Master Roshi made sure of that.
He wished he could share his master's resolve, his sentiment of utmost determination that oozed from his body. Instead, Krillin was plagued by that last conversation with Yamcha, full of self-doubt and, in a strange way, release for the former bandit. He was going to walk away… from all of it. The fighting, the pain. He and Bulma were- they were-
He ducked his head into his sleeve, soaking up his tears before they spilled out of his eyes. There would be time to grieve later. Until then, he had to keep himself ready for anything. Ready to fight an ancient menace- a menace that stole my friend.
Clenching his fists, Krillin lifted his head to face the open sky ahead.
0o0o0
After being uncertainly proclaimed and celebrated as the winner of the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament- due to a lack of better options and no one being able to find the somewhat more legitimate champion Jackie Chun- Tien hauled Kakarot over his back, and with Chiaotzu at his side, walked towards the main building. 'I'm guessing Master Roshi is in the infirmary still?' Tien speculated, 'otherwise he'd had come back to us by now.'
'Yea, I think- wait. Tien, do you feel that?'
Tien stopped and spread out his ki sense- and was immediately bombarded by a roiling of energy far away on the planet. This is… this power is insane! And- Master Roshi is there! What's going on? 'What's Master Roshi doing on the other side of the planet?'
Chiaotzu said nothing, and quickened his pace towards the infirmary. Tien did the same.
They never reached it. As they rounded a corner at the approximate half-way point, they stumbled upon a number of people huddling in a circle in the center of a hallway. Tien instantly recognized Launch, his quarterfinal opponent, standing unsteadily and facing their direction. She brought her head up from whatever she was looking at- her face was a mess of anger and strewn tears running down her features. She saw Tien, seemed to consider something for a moment, then beckoned them closer. She was uncharacteristically silent.
As Tien and Chiaotzu approached, they became aware of a low, quiet sobbing.
A girl with long black hair was standing with her back to them, her arm in a sling. She moved to the side. It was clear she had also been crying.
One blue-haired girl was strewn across the Turtle student who had been injured by Kakarot earlier; her face was pressed into his chest, as her body heaved with quiet cries. A small, floating cat, almost in a daze, was nudging Yamcha repeatedly. 'Yamcha,' she muttered, 'Yamcha, wake up…'
Yamcha's eyes were rolled over, glossy, his eyelids unnaturally open. Tien knew them as the eyes of a dead man.
'What- what happened?' Tien succeeded in choking out, as he felt all the exhaustion and strain of his previous fights settle on him.
Wordlessly, Chi-Chi gathered something from the ground next to Yamcha's body and showed it to Tien. It was a plain, white piece of a paper; on it was a single symbol painted in broad, heavy strokes. King Piccolo. But- he's a legend, isn't he? Yet, here it was- the note was clearly used by the murderer to identify themselves. I… how is this possible? Has he returned?
'If you're ready,' Launch said expressionless, despite the carnage on her face, 'we four-' she gestured to herself, Chi-Chi, Tien, and Chiaotzu- 'need to go to West City, now.'
Tien gulped, collecting himself, and nodded. He understood now. Master Roshi, Krillin, that other Turtle fighter aren't here… they took their strongest to stop Piccolo. And they're going to need all the help they can get. Tien then remembered where he was, noticing the body he was carrying. 'What do we do,' he briefly lifted the shoulder Kakarot was draped over, 'with him?'
'We can't leave him,' Chiaotzu said, 'so, we need to take him, then. If he wakes up here, unsupervised- there's no telling what he would do. Master Roshi would want us to consult about what to do with him and make a decision together.'
Without wasting any time, Launch nodded in agreement and crouched down next to Bulma. 'Bulma- we need to go. We're- oh, we're sorry…' she couldn't finish what she was saying, choking back an urge to break down completely.
Even in her current state, Bulma understood what Launch was saying- without lifting her head from Yamcha's body, she thrust her hand into a pouch on her hip, rummaged in it for a moment, and chucked away from her a single capsule. Nothing more needed to be said. She remained where she was, alongside Puar.
Launch gingerly collected the capsule, checking the inscription. Satisfied, she pocketed it. 'Let's go,' she said quietly, barely reaching over the muffled cries of Bulma. She led Chi-Chi, Tien, and Chiaotzu out of the tournament building. Once outside, she clicked the capsule and threw it, revealing a helicopter.
Without saying a word, they all clambered into the helicopter, cramming into it considering it only had two large seats. The engine whirred as it flew away.
0o0o0
King Piccolo had landed in West City inconspicuously, blending it well alongside the variety of other humanoid races that inhabited the city alongside humans.
This annoyed Piccolo to no end. So he decimated ten cities blocks with a ki blast. To think they would not recognize me, of all people! They forget my wrath!
People of all stripes- and of all injuries- scrambled out of the path of the demon, who casually walked down a stretch of a vaporized city street, his son Piano towing a large egg behind him. They're here somewhere, Piccolo thought, I can feel them. His permanent link to Kami- curse that bastard- was proving useful. He could sense the dragonballs nearby- and amazingly, there were all gathered together! Today would prove to be an auspicious day for his resumed campaign for world domination. 300 years late, but still- better late than never. He held one arm sideways and fired another wave of energy to his left. Cries of pain laced up from that direction, before deafening in a buzz of energy. How could you care for these weaklings, Kami? They can't even defend themselves.
He continued walking along a blasted boulevard, emerging onto a major highway that had been bisected by Piccolo's initial blast. In front of him, the city opened up into a flat, green space- and just beyond that, a strange half-sphere building sat squat among the taller skyscrapers around it. His senses were going mad- the dragonballs were in that building, he knew it!
Smirking, King Piccolo stepped onto the green- but paused when a small ki blast flew down from above, landing in front of him and spitting dirt into the air. He instinctually brought his arms to brace against the blast- but it was pitifully weak. Why bother with... Ah… He saw, through the cloud of dirt, the outlines of three figures spreading out to face him. They just wanted a moment to land.
The dirt cleared- and across from Piccolo stood three humans, two dressed in orange gis, an old man shirtless with a pair of black, baggy pants. The fighter on the old man's right was a girl with green hair- to his left was a shorter boy, bald. They were posed, ready for battle.
Their previous actions were clear enough. They mean to fight me! Amused, the Demon King crossed his arms.
'Listen to me,' Master Roshi whispered to his students, not taking his eyes off King Piccolo. 'Neither of you are to fight him on your own. Only engage with him when all three of us are attacking him. Otherwise- stay out of his way and behind me. We're not going to have a second chance at this.'
Wordlessly, Krillin and Rayne nodded. Master Roshi drew in a deep breath, then exhaled, in the process summoning his ki. In an instant, he bulked up his body, feeling the familiar power rise within him. He wasn't as strong as when he started the tournament- none of them were- but they would have to make do. Maybe, just maybe, we can do this the old-fashioned way…
In a split second, they launched themselves forward, coming at King Piccolo from all angles. Unimpressed, his arms still crossed, Piccolo moved backward, evading their flurry of attacks. Piano could only gape in awe as his creator nimbly moved around the human fighters, sliding in between them with easy efficiency. Kicks and fists simply swung through air as the King kept himself continually out of their reach. As he neared the edge of the green flat they were on, he grew tired of moving and planted his feet into the dirt.
The three human fighters descended on King Piccolo like bees, buzzing around him in a swirl of strikes and attacks. Yet, despite their opponent's refusal to move his feet, he evaded every attack, shifting seemingly like a ghost in front of their eyes. After a few moments of this, King Piccolo flared his ki- and sent the three of them tumbling backward, unprepared for the strength of his aura. They landed aptly, already feeling a sense of growing dread.
As if wholly uninterested in them, King Piccolo began walking towards the Capsule Corp building. By this point, in response to the sounds of fighting and explosions coming from outside, people were evacuating the building in a frenzied panic.
Shrugging off his disorientation, Master Roshi rallied his students and led them in a charge towards King Piccolo. Now that they knew what direction he was moving towards- he crept undeterred towards the half-sphere building- they began to land hits on the King. Unfortunately, even direct hits seemed to do nothing- King Piccolo continued to walk on, undeterred by their efforts. Growling, Master Roshi called them back- gathering themselves on the other side of the park, in between Piccolo and Capsule Corp.
His students were, thankfully, silent. No amount of despair will help us in this situation. 'Charge your strongest ki attacks!' Roshi yelled, cupping his hands behind his back 'and hit him while he can't be bothered to dodge!'
Obliging, Krillin and Rayne followed his example, forming small blue ki balls behind their backs.
Curious, Piccolo stopped, observing the near synchronous movements being performed by his opponents Whatever they were doing seemed… vaguely familiar. Odd. He registered an uptick in their ki- even interesting. Piccolo thought for a moment longer, then continued his walk forward. But not significant.
Roshi was fairly certain his students were putting everything they had into their blasts- now, however, was time to reveal the depths of his power. 'Huah!' he cried, as he forced more energy from his body. The forming Kamehameha in his hand burgeoned with energy. You'll eat your disdain, Piccolo! Master Roshi flared his ki, signaling his students- and on cue, the three of them thrust their arms forwards, launching three blue beams from their hands. Their attacks came into contact with each other- and amazingly, the beams merged, combining into one gigantic Kamehameha, easily twice as large than anyone watching had ever seen. The beam shone with pure energy- wisps of power and light were flying off the surface- as the beam coiled and borne towards Piccolo.
Belatedly realizing that the attack was much, much stronger than it should have been, with bulging eyes Piccolo raised his guard, crossing his arms in front of him. Clever! The word roared in his mind as the massive beam collided with him, detonating in a glorious explosion.
The shockwave it produced was insane- windows shattered as the sonic force of the blast rode past West City's numerous skyscrapers. Birds flapped into the sky wildly, startled by what was, to them, the single loudest sound they had ever heard. Master Roshi, Rayne, and Krillin had all protectively covered their ears. To think that a living being was at the epicenter of that sound- it was unimaginable.
A strong wind was blowing through West City on that day- for that reason, there was no suspense as whatever dust was generated by the detonation was quickly blown away. Piccolo stood in the same position as before, to the dismay of the human fighters- but he was obviously injured. Scorches ran up and down the demon's arms; they had taken nearly the full brunt of the blast. Unfortunately, he was still standing and looked considerably more annoyed than before. 'That was painful,' he said in a low tone, lowering his arms.
In a blink of an eye, Piccolo appeared before the three fighters, hammering one blow into each of them.
A jab sent Rayne gasping to her knees, gripping her ribcage in agony. Countless ribs were broken in a single strike.
Krillin was flattened by a chop to his right shoulder. He felt his clavicle snap down as he burrowed into the ground.
Master Roshi was the only one who raised their guard in time- his arms tanked the downward kick aimed at his skull. Grinning wildly, he threw off a surprised Piccolo off him and pursued him across the park. The Turtle Hermit revealed he still had quite a lot left in reserve; but like before, Piccolo seemed undisturbed, ignoring the increased pace of his opponents' attacks. A series of successful strikes from Master Roshi forced King Piccolo into a spar in earnest, their strikes indistinguishable from the next due to their speed. From where they were, Rayne and Krillin could only look on in pain as Master Roshi went toe to toe with the demon.
Master Roshi took the moment after jumping over King Piccolo's sweep kick to hop back, again putting distance between himself and King Piccolo. To everyone's surprise, he began laughing, dropping out of his guard.
Confused, King Piccolo murmured to himself.
'You wouldn't understand,' Master Roshi said after a moment, 'how lucky I feel right now.'
'Lucky?' Piccolo's voice could grind metal. 'Truly?'
'I was worried that the gap between us would be insurmountable, like before- but a lot has changed since the last time we met, Piccolo. In your old age you've grown weaker- and in my old age, I've grown stronger.
Last time we met?... Yes, he looked familiar, didn't he? 'I'll admit I'm not very knowledgeable in human biology,' Piccolo spoke evenly, 'but I don't think humans live- well, I assume it's been a long time since I've last walked this planet.'
'You're correct. It has been 300 years, give or take. I should know- I've been alive every year since your reign of destruction.'
'So it is true!' Piccolo's eyes widened. 'I recognized you- I've met you before- presumably much younger, though. You should be honored.' His smile coiled snake-like. 'To survive your first encounter with the Demon King is quite the accomplishment.'
'I did more than survive,' Master Roshi said tersely, 'but I guess it's the same result, in the end. Look at us; we're both old men, fighting battles that should have been decided long ago. Come now; hasn't old age tempered your less-than-good qualities? That was the certainly the case for me.'
Clutching his broken clavicle as best he could to prevent it from tearing up more of his insides, Krillin tortuously turned his head towards Rayne. 'We-' he croaked, 'we need to get the dragonballs, Rayne! I think that's what Piccolo is after!'
Rayne was barely able to look at Krillin- the look of utter pain put a pin in Krillin's plans. I can barely move- and she looks worse than me. Damn it, if only we got here a bit earlier and grabbed them!...
Piccolo stared at Master Roshi, long and hard, then snorted. 'We have no common point of reference. Your relationship to me is that of a slave to a master- if I allow you the privilege of living through this encounter. I have no 'less-than-good' qualities. I have my desires- my desires to destroy, conquer, and rule- and I act on them. There is nothing more to say.' A tinge of unease was rising in the back of Piccolo's head. Surely, he couldn't know the sealing technique. The old man who had used it originally must have died while doing it- he used far too much ki. How would he have taught anyone that technique?
'Pity. It's important to try to talk some sense into your enemies every once in a while. Sets a good example for the students.' Master Roshi momentarily turned towards Krillin and Rayne. 'I wish I could have shown you two more. I wish I had more time- but I think I showed you two, everyone, enough.' Uncomprehending, Krillin could only stare back- Rayne, though she couldn't physically face Master Roshi, listened intently. 'I guess no amount of time would have been enough. Ha.' Master Roshi chuckled, shaking his head. 'I've lived for over three hundred years, and I still didn't have enough time.' He said those last lines wistfully, as if he was thinking to himself.
Master Rosbi turned back to Piccolo. 'I'm under no illusions in this fight. I know that, even though time has made us more equal, we are not equal. You're still stronger than me.'
'So you acknowledge your own inferiority? How proper.' Though he was smirking, Piccolo couldn't shake that feeling of unease. It's impossible!... Literally impossible!
'There's another reason,' Master Roshi said, withdrawing an object from his robes, 'as to why I feel so lucky. You see, if you can believe it, there was another horrible, unspeakable evil that had threatened everything I cared about earlier today. It's hard to believe that when I woke up this morning, the tournament hadn't even begun.' Master Roshi shook his head to clear his thoughts, and casually threw something onto the ground in front of him.
It was… well, Piccolo didn't know what it was. 'Is that… is that a black tail on the ground behind it?' If it's an animal, why does the end of the tail look so weird?
'I didn't use this move earlier, against that threat,' Master Roshi pronounced, his voice deepening as he flexed his arms, 'so you're in for some trouble now, monster! You're looking at the modern day rice cooker!'
Piccolo eyes' shot open- he hurriedly extended one arm at the rice cooker, intending to vaporize it- but before he could release his energy a horrible squishing feeling enveloped him, squeezing and stretching his body. His arm was slowly forced back until it was locked in a downwards position, glued to his body. No! He raged, feeling any control he retained over his body be extinguished, NOOOOOO! Green swam across his vision- a vision that was rapidly stretching vertically.
Master Roshi stood amongst a storm of swirling energy that had seemed to come out of nowhere to blanket both himself and Piccolo. As if commanding a tornado, Master Roshi directed a concentrated cone of green energy towards the demon with sweeping gestures, changing the direction and intensity of the attack at will. The green cone fully enveloped Piccolo and lifted him off the ground into the larger storm above.
At this crucial juncture, Master Roshi doubled the speed of his controlling movements, his limbs forming a miniature storm around his body as King Piccolo's image folded and spilled across the storm. With a great heave, Master Roshi swung both arms downwards, driving King Piccolo straight down the chaotic center of the storm. The Turtle Hermit did this while fending off a number of resisting and buffeting waves of energy that slapped and stirred against him. Piccolo's distorted image slowed but did not stop, as Master Roshi succeeded in holding Piccolo right above the ground.
'HAAA!' With one last yell, Roshi fell to his knees, slamming both his arms down into the ground as he did. Trapped within the cone, King Piccolo sped towards the ground- where the rice cooker Master Roshi had placed before waited.
The two entities clashed together, producing a blinding flash of light as the cone released its tension and sprayed green energy off into the sky. Krillin and Rayne, still struggling to move, covered their eyes.
When the light cleared- King Piccolo was standing next to the rice cooker, panting from the adrenaline surge of the last minute. He glanced down at the electric appliance beside him and quickly pierced it with a beam of ki. Too close. I underestimated him.
Master Roshi watched PIccolo appear in front of him like a haunting, mocking visage. At the last moment, he had failed and had lost control of the Evil Containment Wave. The cone had missed the rice cooker by an inch, at most. Sometimes, though, that was all it took. An inch. I really do have rotten luck, don't I?
He made a movement to stand- and his body immediately and confrontationally resisted the command. Propped off the ground by his arms, he felt his entire body shake. I used it- I used everything. Unsteady, he used whatever power he had left, before every ounce of it fled his body, to stare up at King Piccolo. The demon looked more collected now- he had re-assumed his characteristic steady smirk.
Master Roshi's arm wobbled- not yet! 'You'll never win!; he croaked out, coughing. His entire head shuddered, so much so that his sunglasses fell off of his face, cracking on one side as it hit the ground. Yet, the Turtle Hermit found the energy to lock eyes with Piccolo once more. 'No matter how much you destroy or kill to get what you want, one day, someone will stop you! They'll-' A clutching feeling took hold of Master Roshi's chest, dragging him towards the ground. Never enough time…
With a single thump, Master Roshi collapsed to the ground, dead.
A/N: mm.
Reviews:
bhlazy20: The announcer screwed up and messed up a lot of things by his snap naming of the World's Strongest. Under what are (probably) the rules, 1) Kakarot would have lost due to KO, 2) Tien would be disqualified, 3) Jackie Chun would be disqualified. Of course, they could redo a match, but the idea of World Martial Arts Tournament, at least how I understand it, is to run it over the course of one day. If a fighter is unconscious they probably can't compete anymore on that day. So even though Kakarot was eliminated by foul play, he's still unqualified to win. Regardless, most of these rules weren't fully considered because Master Roshi skipped town. Also, Kakarot was consistently and publically cruel during the tournament. He didn't give the tournament organizers a lot of reasons to help him out in this scenario.
LWexe: Uhh, RAFO. Your excitement is pretty rad- and KO'ing is definitely a word.
Guest #1, who asked about a bandit dude: This is awkward.
Guest #2, who strongly disliked a dudette: I'm curious if you read after chapter 11 because… well, characters change. Also, I change how I depict them. Finally, neither I nor my characters are perfect. I think I've made character development more of a focus since the beginning of this fic, though.
