I wish I owned DBZ, but I don't. I own DVD's and tapes, but it just isn't the same. Nor do I own any legal imprinting of whatever theme I'm using, such as a crossover with another anime, movie or TV series. Did I think it up? Yes. Was I the first to think it up? Probably not, but I digress. I also don't own the rights to any of the music pieces you see selected, just the merchandise, such a shame. The artists that created them are geniuses and we all must bow to them.
Chapter 13: Infiltrate
In the early light of morning, Verto stared out at the twilight. He hadn't slept at all and had opted for a Senzu Bean to ease both his hunger and his fatigue. Once he did, he felt more than energized, which was odd considering he was so low on sleep. All night he had pondered what was going on. That included what had happened with the cultists, the mad scientists, the strange red priest and especially what had happened on the Kai world. The latter of those had really thrown him off, as hearing that there was a missing person that was female made him have a temporary surge of hope about someone lost.
I'm not sure that they were actually talking about Lenz, but it would make sense for Leira and the Kais to be secretive about it. It was hinted that she might be able to come back but with great effort. I should not get my hopes up about that, they all know that if they pull the rug out from under me on that I won't ever forgive them. So, assuming that the missing person is someone else, I have no clue who they could mean. No one else I know personally is missing that I know of. Leira did imply it would become my problem though. What that might have to with Wheelo or the cultists, I have no idea. Speaking of which, that Soren guy must've slipped me the other vial, it is the only explanation. His teleportation ability is pretty damn impressive, tracking and catching him won't be easy.
Verto then stood up and tightened his belt before slipping on his martial arts shoes under his green gi. He hadn't bothered putting his capsule house back up since he did not sleep. Fortunately, the island environment was somewhat soothing to him and he had stayed outside despite many offers to bunk up. During the night he had realized that he had not charged up his scanner and opted to do so. This also provided the program Kain time to upload any data that had not been sent from the previous outing. Verto was about to take off when he heard someone come outside. Surprisingly it was Android Seventeen, who was still missing an arm.
"Off already kid?" Seventeen asked.
"Yeah, this cyborg cult thing is probably ahead of us, so we can't waste any time with the lack of information we have. The problem is that we don't know where to look yet aside from all those places on the map," Verto explained.
"Might as well pick one and go then," Seventeen suggested.
Verto nodded grimly, "Yeah, I'd like to hit more than one at a time but after one was found they might move them. I know I would."
"Hmmm, so where will you go?"
"West City first to see if Bulma and Sonny figured anything out. Go from there. We learned some things yesterday, but it wasn't much," Verto said.
Seventeen smiled, "Makes sense to me. I'm heading that way too, so your mother and Dr. Briefs can fix my arm up."
"Question, if you are supposed to be based on humans and just enhanced, why do you need mechanical parts?" Verto asked.
Seventeen chuckled, "You can thank that old coot Kochin for that. When he put me back together he replaced this arm and some other parts with mechanical. That's why I had that big cannon for an arm last year and why it has broken off twice now. Your mom at least gave me something that resembles a real arm, but it is still synthetic. I considered maybe asking for a wish to fix it but there are more important matters," Seventeen explained.
Verto nodded, "Can't argue with that."
"So shall we? Drive together?"
Verto stared at him, "Drive? Really?"
Seventeen shrugged, "Yeah, that wouldn't be safe. I only have one arm and you're underage."
"Oh, I still remember how to, and we can argue the safety part for the other drivers. Nice try, park ranger, but I'm not driving that many miles when we can fly there in an hour or less," Verto replied, slightly annoyed.
Seventeen gave in, "You're no fun."
Verto and Seventeen arrived as it was still fairly dark outside and most of the city was asleep. This did not include a certain Saiyan Prince however, who looked like he was about to begin his morning training session as he waited for the pair to land.
He couldn't help but smirk at Seventeen's predicament, "What's wrong Android, lose your back scratcher again?"
Seventeen chuckled, "I remember when you didn't have either of your arms thanks to my sister."
"Funny, want to see if they're still broken?"
Verto rolled his eyes, "Do we really have to have a pissing match this early in the morning?"
Vegeta snorted at Verto's bluntness, "The detective and Bulma have been in the lab all night because of you, so I'll have the pissing match whenever I want." Verto shook his head as he moved past Vegeta with a scowl. Both Seventeen and Vegeta followed him, giving each other smirks that clearly meant action later. Upon reaching the lab, they found Sonny passed out in a chair while Bulma was furiously typing on a small screen filled with code. Up on a larger display however, was a simulation of some kind where micro machines were swimming around with organic cells. All three of them watched in wonder as the machines contacted the cells, infected them with something, and made new machines out of them before moving on.
"No, no, no! How is it so fast?!" Bulma muttered aloud.
"How is what so fast?" Verto asked, startling her. Bulma spun around in her chair, showing that it had indeed been a late night as she had baggy bloodshot eyes and her blue hair was a mess.
"Oh, it's you, is it morning already?!" she exclaimed.
"Burning the midnight oil eh," Verto replied as he walked up to the desk and handed her what was obviously a cup of cooled coffee.
"You could say that, what happened to your arm Seventeen?" Bulma asked in slight distress.
"You know, the usual. Tried to shut down another mad doctor, and they don't want to go quietly," Seventeen chuckled slightly.
Bulma grimaced, "Well that pink stuff you brought back was definitely made by Flandal or maybe his assistant. It is filled with nanites, which are really small micro machines. As you can see they rapidly transform a person into a cybernetic being at the cellular level. But this isn't like Gero's work with Seventeen and Eighteen. I tested a sample on some of Sonny's blood and they are just eating right through it, transforming the host cells into more machines to do work. Judging by the incredibly sophisticated programming, I think these nanites are capable of transforming a person completely into a cyborg within a period of seven to eight hours."
"Damn, that is quick," Verto commented.
"Is there any way to reverse it?" Seventeen asked.
Bulma shrugged, "I haven't figured how to slow it down, never mind stop it. I would imagine there's a way but by the time we find it everyone who has been transformed will be lost."
Vegeta folded his arms, "Well there is one way for sure, kill the hosts and use the Dragon Balls to revive them."
Bulma scowled, "Just what you need, a reason to go on a killing spree."
"He's half right, we should use them when this is over," Verto said.
"True, I haven't been able to make too much sense of the programming these things use or what they install. If I could get some more samples from people who have been transformed already I could perhaps figure it out," Bulma said.
Verto pulled his scanner out from his pocket, "How about some mechanical assistance. Kain have you been monitoring?"
Vegeta's grumble filled the room, "Argh, that hologram thing again."
Sonny was startled awake by this, "Wha?"
Verto ignored him as the scanner lit up and Kain's computerized voice came out, "I have sir. I agree with Miss Briefs that more samples will be needed. In addition, I believe that the programming comes from a basic working approach involving the host's input and output signals with a transitive algorithm that changes based on need. That need is likely controlled by a centralized server that is connected to the host by another signal."
"Umm, what did that thing just say?" Sonny asked.
Bulma rubbed her chin in thought, "Well the simplest way to put it…no that's not it."
"He said that the cyborgs are being controlled from somewhere, which we already knew. And that we need more chopped limbs," Verto said in summary.
"Crude, but essentially yes," Bulma agreed.
"Are they contagious?" Vegeta asked. Several eyes popped open with wonder, each knowing exactly what he meant by that.
"I do not believe so sir, the nanites appear to adapt to the host once inside and do not make copies that can be extracted once they do. Even if Miss Briefs were to take a sample of these particular nanites that have already adapted to the Detective's blood and used them on another sample, I do not believe they would work. It also appears that the original nanites cease to function once the process has started. To put it in plain terms, it is like putting down your signature onto paper using ink. Once applied it cannot be easily altered or removed without destroying the paper," Kain explained further.
"It won't be of much use if it is not contagious. Waste of my time," Vegeta muttered as he left the room.
"For now," Verto said just loud enough for Vegeta to hear.
"Well, that makes sense I guess. So where should we go next?" Sonny asked as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
"I have analyzed the map and am attempting to trace the signal given off by the nanites. It is not a strong signal given that there is no host, but I recommend travelling eight hundred and sixty-seven miles south-southwest. There is a desert location outside a large primitive human village that is showing increased activity with a matching signal," Kain continued. A map quickly displayed onto the larger screen, showing a location not far from what appeared to be Fortune Teller Baba's Palace.
"There is a high amount of interference in the area, likely caused by localized atmospheric phenomena," Kain said.
"You mean bad weather?" Verto asked.
"I cannot confirm that sir," Kain answered.
"What does that mean?" Sonny asked.
Verto closed the scanner, "It means pack a raincoat. That's where we're going."
"I'll keep running tests while I fix Seventeen's arm. Be careful," Bulma reminded.
Verto flew to the south with Sonny on his back just like before, this time foregoing his temptation to pass by Korin Tower on the way even though it was quite a change in direction. Instead, he reached out to someone he knew would likely be directly above it.
"Piccolo, can you hear me?" Verto said telepathically.
Piccolo's instant answer told him that the Namekian was quite aware, "Of course, I can kid. Even if I didn't teach you how to speak telepathically, I would not only sense, but hear you flying across the Earth. Where are you going now?"
"To a village in the south. Can you confirm that the cultists have completely left the area under the lookout?"
Piccolo paused for a brief moment, "I don't know what you are looking for, but there is no one there now after you chased them off yesterday. I am standing in the middle of where that camp was and there is little trace of anything."
Verto wasn't surprised, "Okay, just checking."
"I am not sure if it will help, but there is a village near Baba's palace that I've detected a strange energy near every so often. It disappears quickly when I do detect it, and I do not believe it is related to the cultists. However, they may be interested in it," Piccolo warned.
Verto's eyes narrowed, "Okay, that's not vague at all. I will watch for it, whatever it is." Piccolo didn't respond to that, so Verto assumed the connection was closed. Sonny had remained silent for the most part, though was still not completely awake as the Capsule Corp coat Bulma gave him flapped in the breeze. Only when they passed by Baba's palace and approached the village did he say anything.
"So kid, what do you think we'll find here?" Sonny asked.
Verto grimaced, "Well, it's probably too much to hope for nothing. Especially if Kain could trace the signal all the way to around here."
Sonny frowned, "How come your scanner talks like it's a person you've encountered before?"
Verto smirked, "He sort of was I suppose. Let's just say it's a computer program that we've put to good use."
"What does that mean?"
"Pardon the interruption sir, but I am detecting extreme weather developing ahead. However there appears to be no organized storm system to generate it," Kain claimed, with the sound coming from Verto's pocket.
Sonny's eyes widened, "Come again?" Verto caught sight of a set of dark clouds ahead, almost directly above human energy signals. From that cloud, a long and violently twisting column had descended, threatening to destroy everything in its path on the ground.
"A tornado? In the desert?" Sonny asked.
"It is not uncommon for brief light vortices to spin up and cause what is known as a dust devil. But you are right Detective, this is not a common storm and the humidity levels show that it should not be possible even with the proper wind shear, which there is very little," Kain explained.
Verto pulled the scanner from his pocket and retrieved the ear piece before handing it back to Sonny, "Take Kain, I'm going to have to quickly land you on the ground and then take off again. The people down there are in the open which is not where you want to be when one of those comes through. I'll go see if I can disrupt it."
Sonny nodded, "I gotcha."
"I advise caution sir, I am measuring wind speeds exceeding 300 kilometers per hour," Kain advised. Verto's aura appeared around them as he increased speed and got underneath the thundercloud. Below, many frightened villagers were attempting to flee as the tornado approached, only to see their straw huts being tossed by the ferocious winds. Lightning struck near the base of the tornado, knocking down anyone unfortunate enough to be close by. The villagers that were far enough away called back to their friends and neighbors, but they knew that they could not do much. Verto startled them further when he approached and landed long enough for Sonny to touch down.
"Who are you?" one of the villagers said as he struggled to hold onto the turban around his head.
"I'm here to help, tell your people to do their best to get away from it," Verto ordered as he floated off the ground. Upon getting much closer to the tornado, Verto realized that it was quite a bit bigger than he originally thought, easily spanning half a kilometer or more. Ahead, near its base, he spotted a mother attempting to run away from it, holding onto a screaming toddler in her arms. Verto acted immediately and flew towards them, stopping long enough to pick them up and then deposit the pair away from the dangerous tornado. He circled back right after and flew straight into the tornado's core. Inside, the violent twisting wind was even worse, and the air was filled with dirt, debris and random lightning that made up the funnel itself. Verto couldn't see or sense any other people inside, so he did his best to get to the very center and concentrated as he floated. His energy promptly exploded outwards in a bright golden wave of light, effectively washing away the tornado's funnel with pure force. The winds died down instantly, and the clouds above drifted apart, revealing calm, blue skies within seconds. Verto descended to the ground and stared up at the dissipating clouds in slight wonder.
He then tapped his earpiece, "Kain, you said there wasn't an obvious storm system that was generating that right?"
"Correct sir, I am not certain what was causing it. I shall divert a few of my subroutines to monitor the area for any further changes," Kain replied. Verto didn't answer as he floated back off the ground and flew slowly towards Sonny, who was now surrounded by a few dozen darker skinned villagers. Most of them were wearing sparse clothing, mostly enough to cover their sensitive parts. Verto didn't have to guess that it was a very poor village, Upa and Bora's village was similar. Most of them were quite happy that he was there however as they all began to clap and cheer.
"Thank you so much. You saved our village great hero!" the first villager that had approached Sonny, "How can we ever repay you?" By this point, Verto had scanned every single villager and none of them seemed like they were cyborgs in any way. He did sense something strange, but he was unable to pinpoint it for the moment.
Verto simply smiled lightly and just nodded, "Just some information if you have it."
"Certainly, my name is Niboo. I am one of the leaders of the village. You saved my wife Niobe and my young son just now," Niboo pointed out. Verto turned to see the woman coming closer, still holding onto the toddler who didn't seem to want anything but comfort after the traumatic experience he had just gone through. The mother did put him down though and he stared up at Verto with curious but cautious black eyes. The boy sported a small black mohawk on his otherwise bald brown head. Verto also sensed the strange energy fluctuate from within the small boy, alerting him that this boy was not normal.
Verto's eyes narrowed, I've sensed this energy before, but where? The expression change seemed to frighten the toddler, who scampered behind his mother's legs.
Verto softened immediately, "Sorry little guy. What is his name?"
"Uub, he was born not two summers ago," Niboo explained.
Verto hid his surprise, "Well he looks like he's going to grow up to make you proud."
Niboo and Niobe both nodded and smiled, "Thank you."
Verto gave Uub a knowing glance, So this is Majin Buu's reincarnated soul in a human body. I didn't think he would be this old already, but maybe the reincarnation process is different than I thought. Hopefully nothing bad happens during his upbringing. Speaking of which.
"Have you folks seen or heard of any large gatherings nearby that have been…troublesome to your village?" Verto asked.
Niboo's smile faded, "Yes, there have been many visitors to our village in the past few weeks. They wanted us to convert to worshipping their god. They have even taken our people to their camp on top of the mountain. When they return, they are not themselves anymore. They threaten us with violence and disaster if we do not cooperate. They even say that their god is causing these acts of nature against us because we do not obey. That wind funnel was not the first that we have seen, but it was the strongest one so far."
Verto grimaced slightly, "I see. I may have to take a good look at that mountain."
"They only seem to be active at night. We see bright lights and fire coming from the mountain top many times. Along with a lot of noise," Niobe pointed out.
Sonny cleared his throat slightly, "Can you describe them for us?"
"Some of them come in red robes, others are in uniforms with an armband that says MAX on it," Niboo replied.
"That's them alright," Sonny said with a slight sigh.
"How many of your people are left?" Verto asked as he glanced around. He could only count about fifteen of them but felt there might be more.
"We are scattered throughout the valley but meet here every four sunsets. Tonight is meeting night, but there were many missing last time," Niobe said.
Verto pushed a little further, "How many, rough guess."
"Hmmm, I think perhaps fifty were missing, but we have nearly a thousand in our lands. Most of them live near the mountain or further south towards the river. Our lands extend to the east by the sea and north to Lady Baba's," Niobe continued.
Sonny looked concerned, "That is a lot of land to cover."
Verto nodded, "Too much for just us. But if they all come here that makes it easier. Last question, do the ones that are not themselves return to the village meetings?"
Niboo nodded, "They do, to try and convince others. Our village elder forbid it at first, but then when so many would leave and go with them, he had no choice but to let them in again."
"Can we speak to the elder?" Sonny asked.
"Yes, he will be here soon. He is a great fighter that almost won the world's martial arts tournament many years ago!" Niboo declared.
Verto's eyebrow went up, "Well we're friends with at least a few of the winners of that contest, if that helps."
"Oh! The elder will especially want to meet with you then! I will send for him right away!" Niboo exclaimed. He and Niobe promptly scampered off with Uub in tow, back to what was left of their straw hut. The rest of the villagers set themselves to repairing what they could of their huts.
"What do you think kid?" Sonny asked.
"I think we should be a little more subtle this time," Verto replied as he eyed the mountain in the distance. He couldn't sense anything directly but that meant little.
"How about we infiltrate the cult as volunteers and see what happens?" Sonny suggested.
Verto frowned, "Well if that priest or any of the others from Upa's village are here, they may recognize us, certainly me. And what are you going to disguise with, spray paint and a toga? We'll stand out even if we dress like the locals do. At least I will."
Sonny rubbed his chin slightly, "Well maybe just me. Can you hide in the background and out of sight?"
Verto nodded, "That isn't a problem. What concerns me is if things get violent, we may have a difficult time protecting these people and their children." Verto had worded his statement carefully so not to tip Sonny off that Uub was special, but it wasn't a false statement.
"True, but if you stay as you are, you could basically call it a disguise, right?" Sonny asked.
Verto's eyebrow shot into the air, "What do you mean by that?"
"Well, all blonde and stuff." Verto's eyes widened when he realized what Sonny meant. He had been in Super Saiyan form the entire time since dispersing the tornado.
He quickly hid his surprise, powering down and felt his hair drift down to its normal placement, "Yeah that's true. But out of sight is better."
Sonny spotted a group of villagers approaching, led by an older one that was clearly a leader type, "I think the elder is here."
Verto nodded but stayed silent. How did I transform without realizing it? Granted I'm very used to being some form of Super Saiyan, but my power was sealed enough that I have to release the seal to even use it now. What the hell happened? I wonder if Leira's adjustment to the seal affected how it works. Well small blessings, this will be way more convenient if I don't have to bother with it when I need to use Super Saiyan Two. I wonder what will happen if I release it though… Sonny cleared his throat, alerting Verto to the newcomers.
"This is our village elder," Niboo said as he gestured to the tall dark man wearing a turban and a red toga.
"Greetings, I am Nam, I understand you know some martial artists. Your uniform looks like one I have seen before," Nam said.
Verto bowed slightly with respect, "Yeah, I just don't wear orange."
"You are friends with Goku and Master Roshi aren't you?" Nam exclaimed.
Verto nodded, "And you fought with both a long time ago if I'm not mistaken."
"Well, he is friends with them, I'm just around. I'm Detective Sonny Satsu, and we're looking into what appears to be a religious cult that is causing problems nearby," Sonny said, keeping on task.
Nam's cheerful demeanor faded, "Yes, we know of them. They have convinced many of our people to join them and when they come back, they are not the same as they were."
Sonny nodded, "So we've heard. We would like to attempt to infiltrate their ranks and learn more about them, and then put a stop to it. Can you help us?"
Nam snapped his fingers, "Niboo, find some suitable clothes for the detective to use to blend in. Ranjen, please come up with something suitable to cover his pale skin. He can be one of our ancient warriors tonight."
Sonny's head turned, "Come again?"
Verto stifled a laugh, "I think you're going to be on display."
"I think just a cloak would be enough right? What about the kid instead?" Sonny argued.
Nam shook his head, "At each tribal gathering, several of our people will dress as ancient warriors going into battle. We will paint the disguise on and they will not know who you are as long as you remain as a statue and do not speak. We only do this with male adults though, apologies."
Verto waved it off, "Oh that's perfectly fine. Disguises don't suit me. I'll just hide really well."
Niobe laughed as she tugged on Sonny's arm, "Come detective, we will make you look quite powerful."
Sonny's head turned back to Verto in nervousness, "K-K-K-K-id-d-d!"
Verto's smirk held, "If you're lucky they'll give you blonde hair too."
While Sonny was being disguised, Verto elected to fly low towards the mountain and do some scouting. He only saw a few people out there scattered about, which all appeared to be hunters judging by their spears. When he got within a mile of the tall plateau he sped up to a much faster pace, kicking up some sand. He knew there was a chance he would be spotted, but it was a much better chance if he went slow. Once he reached the rock face he soared straight up, slowing considerably as he reached the top. Cautiously he peered over the cliff before rising all the way up and landing near the edge. Before him was a large array of tents and vehicles, but no people. Verto cautiously walked towards the encampment, scanning with all of his senses. There were plenty of signs of recent activity, but absolutely no one nearby. Verto's eyes narrowed as he approached the center of the camp, having not picked up one life sign that wasn't a nearby bird.
Where are they? He closed his eyes and reached out to sense all life signs in the area regardless of how weak. He detected many people back down in the valley in all the relevant directions, as well as quite a bit of animal life. But near the camp there was basically nothing. They must be hiding, or concealed somehow.
"Looking for someone?" a voice said behind him. Verto's eyes opened, but he didn't need to turn to know it was Soren. He slowly turned and eyed the red priest, whose cloak flapped in the breeze.
"Looks like I found someone. Where's the rest?" Verto asked in a low tone.
"Safe from you. I told you that it is fruitless and too late. You might as well let it happen before you fight back, the result is the same," Soren claimed.
"Fat chance. We know what you are doing, turning these people into cyborgs," Verto said.
Soren turned and looked away, "It isn't me doing that. Perhaps you should look elsewhere for that source."
Verto grimaced, "Yeah yeah, Doctor Wheelo. I got that part. What I don't get is why, aside from basically taking over everyone. Ruling the world, enslavement of the human race, overall power. Whatever his deal is, it stops before this gets any worse."
Soren smiled, "I like your determination, but I'm afraid the wheels were set in motion a long time ago. You and your friends ensured it, we are just following through."
"And who are your friends? Wheelo is resourceful enough for this if he has enough time, but he's too scientific to be religious. Not to mention that he shouldn't even be alive after Vegeta ripped his last big robot to pieces," Verto pointed out.
Soren's smile didn't fade, "You're not wrong. Join us and you can ask him yourself."
Verto's eyes didn't buy the false offer, "Like he would allow that."
Soren nodded, "He would if he had to, but you're right, it is unlikely."
Verto sensed the conversation wasn't going anywhere and decided to change the subject, "So, why did you slip me that other vial? The green one."
Soren folded his arms inside his sleeves, "Whatever do you mean? Are you sure you are not underestimating your own impressive speed?"
Verto smirked, "Oh I definitely could have, but you offered the pink one when you didn't have to."
Soren snorted slightly, "You really should get your rest, you will need it for the coming battle."
Verto stepped closer, "I'll get it when I put a stop to this crap. Enough already. Where is the rest of your crew, looks quite a bit bigger than last time?"
Soren unfolded his arms, "Our numbers will only get bigger every day, no matter what you do."
Verto stepped closer again, this time powering up and transforming into a Super Saiyan, "Not this time."
Soren frowned, "If you are going to be a hindrance, I will have no choice but to put a stop to it."
Verto sunk into his stance, "Oh please do."
Soren shook his head, "Always the Saiyan first, not the brain. Such a shame. No matter, I need not fight you to deal with you." Verto phased out just as Soren's hand came up glowing red, reappearing directly to Soren's left.
Soren glanced at him, "Well played, however it won't help." The ground around Verto's feet glowed suddenly, and before he could budge all he saw was bright light.
"Damn it!" Verto growled as the light disappeared. He had been transported, but this time to a place with green grass and sparse trees.
He immediately tapped his ear piece, "Kain, come in!" There was no response. He suddenly noticed that the sky was pink with yellow clouds and the gravity was different. The energy in the air had completely shifted as well, and he only detected three life forms nearby.
"Verto? How'd you get here?" one of them asked. Verto spun in surprise to see King Kai standing there along with his pets.
"Shit!"
A/n: Not intentionally doing long breaks in between chapters, but with DB Super going on I was deciding how I was going to implement all of that new material, to which I've mostly taken care of. Also, you know, life.