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 24: Darkness Returns
Verto's jaw remained open in shock at the sight of Lenz, or rather Kaon, standing before him as she pulled off the red robe she had been wearing. The crowd made an audible gasp at the sight of her as well, more noticeably when the curvier parts of her were exposed to them. Her appearance was very similar to how Verto remembered the first time he encountered her demon side, down to the blue skin and scantily clad apparel. This time however, she was wearing a very tight, all black V-neck body suit that while it didn't leave much to imagination, it did manage to hide her more provocative areas. Her hair was still its lavender color, but to Verto her red and black eyes were darker than they had ever been.
"Oh, have I ever missed you. So much has happened since we last saw each other! What has it been, a year? Year and a half? It's felt like an eternity," Kaon said with a beaming expression.
"Depends on which side of you we're talking about. I don't suppose Lenz is in there somewhere?" Verto asked.
Kaon laughed, "Hahaha, oh I bet you're curious about that. I'm afraid that weak girl is here, trapped in what was her mind. And I've had plenty of time to figure out how to keep her there and pretty much break her completely. I'm not sure she could even walk on her own now. Would you like to wave to her?"
Verto's eyes narrowed into a glare, "What I would like is for you to stop whatever this is."
Kaon scuffed at this, "Or what? You going to try and kill me? As if you even could. Maybe in your top condition, but you are no longer that fighter. No, you allowed yourself to be weakened and trapped your own true power within you with that silly seal. If you had kept that power, I doubt I would be able to easily deal with you. Now, you get to see what a mistake that was!"
"Pardon me, but I believe we should get on with the summoning. We are expected to open the portal soon," Soren said as he stepped next to Kaon.
The strange purple alien girl gasped slightly, "Soren? What are you doing here?" Soren frowned slightly and snapped his fingers, causing her to vanish again. Within moments she was covered in the robe again and tied up over the lava pit, like Verto had done nothing to save her before.
"Well placed Soren, for a moment I thought you were losing your touch," Kaon said as Soren bowed slightly.
"You, wizard," Verto growled with disdain.
Soren glanced at him, "Yes?"
Verto pointed at the captive girl who continued to struggle with her bonds, "You said if I rescued her that I would stop something bad from happening. You said that if I saved, well, whoever that is, I could stop all this. Was this just all a ploy to lure me here?"
Soren lowered his head, "Yes, I lured you here. And yes, if you saved her fast enough, you would stop something bad from happening. I did not lie, to you." Verto audibly growled but had no response.
Wheelo grinned, "It's just as well. Though I must say, Soren is probably the most skilled person I have ever met that is versed in persuasiveness. I have taken a few of those lessons to heart."
Kaon yawned slightly, "Well this has been fun, but we really should get down to business. Come on you little brat, hurry up and get all your resisting out of your system." Verto eyed the crowd of human onlookers, most of which were uncertain of what to make of this development. The same could not be said for a few of the more hormone driven males near the front.
"Wow, alien chicks are hot!"
"I know we want them all gone, but I'd make an exception for her!"
"Dude, look at that rocking body! I'd wear myself out on that twenty-four seven!"
Kaon smirked at the cat calls, "Oh you have no idea how hot I actually am boys."
"I doubt they really want to know either," Verto said. He promptly powered up further, causing the stage to crack apart as he hit Super Saiyan Two. Kaon was not impressed and simply held out her hand which glowed with purple energy. All at once, Verto's arms were bound to his side and his legs were forced together as his aura disappeared. It became obvious quickly that Kaon had bound and paralyzed him with just her energy.
"That sure didn't last long, little brother. Are you going soft on me? Normally I'm disappointed when a man does that, but I suppose you don't count, do you?" Kaon sneered slyly. Verto could barely even clench his own teeth against what was a minor effort on Kaon's part to keep him contained. He attempted to flare his energy but was unsuccessful at doing so. In fact, he couldn't even power down.
Kaon continued to taunt him as she willed him to turn on his side and float towards her, "Well, I do love a captive audience. Good thing we have plenty of volunteers in that regard. Doctor, can you position the alter now?"
Wheelo nodded and turned a circular dial on his remote control. The result was a large stone slab rising out of the floor directly before the altar, which turned sideways so it was parallel to the etched circle with lettering around it. Verto could only watch as his body floated to this slab and was set down on it. More energy bonds emerged from the slab and wrapped around his body to secure him there before the slab turned up and sat slightly diagonally but was vertical enough for Verto to see what was happening. Kaon released her spell and Verto could at least move his head again, but that was about it.
Kaon approached Verto who began to struggle again, "I wouldn't struggle too much. These chains are not as strong as mine, but I wouldn't want you to wear yourself out before the show begins. I want you to see every detail. Now then, let's do something about your energy." Verto turned his head in disgust as she drew closer, and out of the corner of his eye he spotted the still disguised Sonny in the crowd, who was preparing something under his robe. Verto sharply turned his head as if to tell Sonny not to jump in, which was enough of a signal for the detective to put a pause on it. His head was yanked back forward by Kaon's hand as her face hovered not a foot away from his own.
"Where are you looking? The show is in front of you. I remember how you secretly lusted for this body, and I know that hasn't changed. But something else about you has, and I need it right now," she said in a seductive tone. Her palms heated up with energy and turned bright orange, causing steam to evaporate from them.
Verto's eyes widened, "What are you doing?"
His answer came when she grabbed on to his wrists and he painfully cried out as they burned. His wristbands burned up instantly, exposing the seal underneath. In quick fashion, his Super Saiyan hair faded to black and he felt his power drop like a rock. The effect was immediate as Kaon felt his energy change within seconds. Verto stirred within a few moments, but Kaon was quick to direct her arm at him. The point of her elbow opened up, and a long, rope-like tentacle slithered out and wrapped around his torso. Verto attempted to summon what energy he had to stop this, but it was absorbed by the demon hybrid before he could do anything. Within five to ten seconds, any resistance he could have mustered was gone.
With her other arm, she reached up and patted him on the head, "There there now, you won't need that energy anymore. Don't worry, we'll put it to good use." As soon as she was done and Verto was drained, she charged up her palms again and grabbed his wrists like before. There was no painful cry by Verto this time as he was weakened beyond that point. She continued to glow as she also absorbed what Ki energy was left before she finally released the hold and her tentacle retracted back into her arm.
Wheelo was quite impressed by this as he strolled up to observe, "What did you do?"
Kaon backed away from her captive, "As you may have noticed before, certain elemental energy sources have changed the seal on his powers, causing them to reverse and block his main source of energy while releasing the other. Not knowing about that before ended up costing you, but in fairness he didn't know about it either. Fortunately for us, I knew all about it and know how to crack the code you could say. That witch Leira attempted to repair it so that it wouldn't happen again. Unfortunately for her, she merely changed what element it was vulnerable to, which is now fire instead of electricity. Now that I've absorbed his energy, we can use it for the summoning."
Wheelo turned his head slightly, "I thought we needed the girl for that?"
Kaon smirked, "Oh we need her, just not for that purpose. You should send her back to her cell now Soren, she has served her purpose as bait. This brat's energy is better suited for this task anyway."
Soren bowed his head and snapped his fingers, "As you wish." The captive girl vanished, and Wheelo closed the lava pit with his remote control, though he had a notable frown on his face.
"So, he was actually the sacrifice? Clever, and convenient. Is there anything else you are not telling me? I helped set a lot of this up as you well know, and I don't like being kept in the dark," Wheelo reminded.
"All in good time Doctor, you might want to tell them to back up. This is where the fun part begins," Kaon said.
Wheelo did so and motioned the crowd to give Kaon and Soren more space around the altar. Verto managed to weakly come to his senses, enough to see both Kaon and Soren join hands in front of him. After a moment they glowed bright with purple and red energy respectively, which combined and shot towards the altar's etched donut-like circle. It first outlined and then filled with the same energy, forming a portal.
Once it was stable, Soren and Kaon turned to the altar and spoke together as they raised their hands, "Come, Lord Torev! We summon thee!"
The crowd joined in and chanted the same thing repeatedly as they mimicked the wizard and demon, as if they were donating energy to a Spirit Bomb. The effect was drastically different however as the portal filled with a black shadow. That shadow then stretched and leaked out of the portal, into the open air. It had red eyes that glared at Verto with a heated expression that was hard to match. The gasps from the crowd were also hard to match, although there was one among them that was not surprised.
The shadow was not deterred by this, "I've waited so long for this! You have no idea what I have endured for this moment!"
"Who the hell are you?" Verto rasped weakly.
"Oh, you'll know soon enough," the shadow replied.
"Now, Lord Torev, take your new body and join us in this world!" Soren called out.
Verto's eyes widened as the shadow raced towards him, and there was nothing he could do about it. It covered him entirely, engulfing Verto to a point he could not even breath. It seeped into his skin, eyes, mouth, and every other possible opening it could find. Then, a bright burst of white lightning erupted out of his wrists, causing both Verto and the shadow to cry out in pain. The shadow was forced off Verto by the lightning, which had such intensity that it actually cut Verto's hand enough to drip blood onto the ground.
Kaon was mortified, "What happened?!" Soren too was in shock, until he saw the lightning emitting from Verto's wrists, which was quickly fading into the seal.
"I think the answer lies with him," Soren pointed out. Kaon's eyes darted to the black lettering under Verto's wristbands and her hair stood on end with rage.
"That bitch! She placed a special counter-spell on him, possession is impossible! Argh! I hate her so much!" Kaon roared. The shadow had dropped onto the ground and seemed nearly lifeless as it struggled to even move, sitting on top of the dirt like a partially torn and discarded curtain.
Kaon looked down and grinned when she saw the blood, "Well, not to worry. We can still complete the ritual; we just need to borrow something first." She ran her finger along the cut the lightning had produced, collecting a decent amount of blood that had pooled and dripped from there. Verto winced at the pain this produced while Kaon stood up and walked over to the motionless shadow. She sat down in the middle of the shadow and pulled up what looked to be its head.
"There now, my Torev. Just take this and I will make everything better," she said softly as she wiped the blood onto the shadow. She then concentrated her power, making the shadow glow with random shades of purple, gold and blue. It roared for a moment before the shadow condensed and turned into a pale color and changed forms. Legs and arms formed, as well as a head covered in spikey hair. A brown tail spouted from the form's backside, and its facial features contorted into a nose and mouth. Kaon grabbed the tail and yanked it out before it had much time to even settle, and the form didn't seem to show any discomfort. Kaon smiled lightly and held her hand up again, and clothes appeared over the shadow's new body. Appropriately, it was an all-black gi, except for the belt which was white instead.
Kaon tossed the brown tail aside, "There, that should get rid of that annoying weakness. Rise now, my Torev."
The shadow figure stood up and stared at his hands while a larger gasp came from the onlookers, including Sonny and even Wheelo. Verto managed to turn his head just right to see what the shadow had become, and it felt like looking at a mirror. This mirror image did resemble Verto to virtually every detail, except Verto did notice that he was at least a few years older and noticeably more muscular. One thing was for certain, he knew exactly who he was dealing with now.
Torev opened his black eyes and stared at his new hands, bending them slightly in amazement. He smirked slightly as he looked up and saw Verto staring back at him.
"Hello, counterpart. Long time no see," Torev said.
"Wish I didn't," Verto retorted.
Torev's smirk widened, "Oh? I'm sure you thought I was gone for good when you destroyed my body. I still don't know how I got out of that. I was sucked into a black hole and was thrown into that hell for what felt like an eternity. But I guess my patience paid off when she found me."
Kaon wrapped an arm around Torev's new shoulders, "Yes, your patience did pay off. Now you have a new body to play with as well, and you can play with me for real now."
Torev eyed her, "Yes, I am looking forward to that. Business first though, like how I plan to gouge his eyes out!"
Kaon playfully let him go, "He's all yours."
As Torev stepped towards the helpless Verto, Wheelo approached quickly with a deep scowl on his face, "You cloned him?!"
"Well, it wasn't what I had in mind, but it'll work. He isn't an exact replica unfortunately, but I did add some, ahem, enhancements," Kaon replied with a sly grin.
"All that work to try and kill him and that was your plan the entire time? Or was it just strictly possession? When were you going to tell me that the kid was the weapon you spoke of?!" Wheelo shouted.
Kaon shoved some of her hair back, "Relax Doctor, I knew you would follow through with our plans and not do anything stupid. Well, not be able to do anything stupid, let's be honest about that one."
Wheelo's anger didn't subside, "I didn't help set all this up just so you could make yourself a new plaything! Even with my scientific genius, it can still be incredibly difficult to deceive all of these stupid people into believing in this religious crap! The only reason it worked is because they are angry sheep that will believe anything!" Kaon's eyebrow went up as the cave filled with murmurs and whispers from the crowd of onlookers.
"This isn't a real thing, it was a lie?"
"I knew it was too good to be true!"
"What do we do now? I've lost friends and family over this!"
"How could we be so stupid?! We let a dictator take over!"
"It's too bad none of them are cyborgs yet, because I do believe you just outed yourself Doctor. Have fun," Kaon said as she walked forward. Torev largely ignored the crowd of onlookers as he stepped towards Verto, who still couldn't move. Once he got there, he took the opportunity to slap the younger Saiyan cleanly across the face.
"You have no idea how good this feels, to be in your skin again, and yet it is mine now," Torev claimed.
Verto spat blood in his face, "Go to hell!"
"Been there, done that. I am a little surprised though, I expected more of a fight from you, even if she did take all your power. And honestly, I don't know how you didn't figure it out the moment you heard about this cult of fools," Torev replied with a shrug.
Verto scowled, "I've been a little busy, and how would I figure it out just by hearing about it?"
"Oh c'mon you simple idiot! 'Cult of Torev?' My name is an anagram of yours! I just chose a different version of it because something like Otrev sounds retarded!" Torev explained.
Verto looked down in dismay, "Well when you put it that way. So, what's next, is your plan to take my place?"
Torev laughed, "Like I want to be around those weaklings, and clearly me showing up to take your place several years older, like they would believe that even if they couldn't tell the difference. No, I want to fight them again, and fight them I will. But you're at the top of my hit list and always have been." Torev then grabbed Verto through the energy bonds and ripped him off the altar, depositing him onto the ground. Verto felt his left shoulder give out in the process, and weakly got to his knees.
Torev angrily grabbed him by the head and lifted as he squeezed, "Get up you pathetic piece of shit! You aren't done with your punishment yet! You think this hurts now? I will show you a level of pain and suffering that you didn't know existed!"
As this was going on, the crowd of human onlookers was stomping towards Wheelo with their own anger, and some of them were even carrying torches. Kaon watched in amusement as this went on, though she couldn't help but notice the one person who was not with the crowd. Sonny was holding a grenade in his hands and preparing to throw it at Torev and Verto.
"Lover, I believe that one is trying to be sneaky," Kaon called out. Torev dropped Verto painfully onto the ground as he noticed this and locked eyes with Sonny.
"I see, what are you anyway, his personal rent-a-cop? I didn't think he had such weak friends," Torev said with an evil grin.
Sonny pulled the pin and hurled the grenade at Torev, "I'm not as weak as you think!"
Torev caught the grenade and laughed as he held it up in front of him, "That'll do pig." Sonny didn't answer as he ducked down and covered his ears. The grenade went off and produced a very bright flash of light just inches from Torev's eyes.
Torev dropped what was left of the flash-bang grenade and groaned as he was blinded, "You'll pay for that!" Sonny quickly got up and ran towards Verto as he pulled something else out of his side pocket. Torev's eyes were painful for a moment before he recovered and turned in anger to see Sonny kneeling over Verto, holding his head up for something.
Torev growled in anger and charged his energy, "You'll wish you never did that! Be gone!" Torev fired a vivid blast of blue energy that overwhelmed Sonny just as he turned to see it coming. Sonny's body vanished in the blast, which shot into the top of the altar and blew it into pieces. Torev gave off a sort of angry satisfaction while his real target continued to lay on the ground.
"Well, there's one pain in my ass gone. Shall we continue?" Torev asked with another evil grin.
Verto hadn't moved since the blast, though to Torev something seemed off. That something was obvious when he looked down at Verto's hand and saw the cut was gone. Torev's world exploded in pain when Verto suddenly kicked up and buried both of his feet into the evil one's stomach. Torev was sent flying into the ceiling and hit hard, bouncing off of it. Verto phased in next to him in midair and struck with his knee and elbow at the same time just below Torev's neck. Spit flew out of Torev's mouth, which was filled with Verto's foot a second later and he went sprawling into what was left of the altar. Verto landed and powered up with determination, turning Super Saiyan Two immediately.
"Come on you prick!" Verto shouted in anger. Stones were overturned as Torev shoved them aside and got back to his feet. He wiped the trail of blood from his chin and grinned again as golden energy shot up around him as well.
"So, donut boy slipped you a Senzu Bean before he died. All the better, I didn't think it was going to be this much fun destroying you!"
Rrwoooaaaw!
Ahh, Ahhh
Burning, now I bring you Hell!
Verto's face remained still as Torev's power increased dramatically and he also transformed to Super Saiyan Two, scattering the remains of the altar. Soon the entire cave floor was being hit with waves of wind and dust from their respective and equal transformations. Verto's eyes narrowed when he sensed Torev's power top out just above his own.
Marginally stronger than me, that's not ideal. I can actually sense his energy this time, it's not just a void. And wow it is dark, but I guess that's no surprise. Okay, so the question then is, how much did he gain in the cloning process? Does he have all my memories and techniques, or … Verto then smirked in realization. From the far side of the room, Wheelo had literally backed himself into a corner with his former followers, all of which were shouting and cursing at him.
Torev saw this, "Well, it appears the good Doctor is having a bad day. Can't say it bothers me."
Verto kept his focus on Torev, "It doesn't bother me either, I've been waiting for him to get his. Too bad I'm busy with you."
"Yes, it is distracting. Let's fix that shall we?" Torev asked.
He then aimed at Verto and charged a potent ball of energy. Just as he fired, he changed directions, and it flew directly the people. Verto turned his head in reaction to this and attempted to move, but Torev was on him in that moment, smashing him in the face with his fist and sending him into the wall. Torev's loose blast raced towards the corner of the cave and exploded right in the middle of all of the people present. Hundreds screamed at once and were quickly silenced when several more blasts followed. Blood splattered about the area as did the bodies they belonged to, leaving a very vivid memory of what was there. Wheelo's body was also hit, and he found himself, or rather only his head, rolling to the side in dismay.
"You have got to be kidding me…" he grumbled as the robotic clone shut itself down.
Read me tonight, when the warnings said leave a shudder upon you
Running from all that you feared in your life
Soul of the night, when the sun mislead paint a horror upon you
Marking the moment, displaying in my ghost of a life!
Torev lowered his hand, "There, no more distractions. Nobody is getting in to interfere either, Soren is seeing to that. I even got rid of that annoying clone of the Doctor for you. Now, where were we?"
His answer came when Verto's knee hit him in the face suddenly. Torev growled and attacked back, to which Verto deflected the blow and countered with a glowing fist to Torev's stomach. Torev jumped back enough that the blow didn't do much damage and swung his leg into Verto's side. Verto phased out just in time, reappearing to strike at Torev's blind spot behind his right shoulder. Torev's right hand sparked with energy as he produced a Ki Sword and swung it directly at Verto. He missed when Verto ducked down, and the overswing cost him dearly when Verto rushed in with his glowing fist again.
"Galic Fist!" Torev's body disappeared temporarily in the explosion before he flew backwards and smashed into the far cave wall next to Wheelo's decapitated head.
Torev groaned as he picked himself up off the ground, "Lucky shot!"
Verto held his glowing hand out and produced a golden, spinning ball, "Was it?" Torev leaned against the wall for a moment before reproducing his Ki Sword and kicking off the wall to attack, coming flying in at rapid speed. Verto cast his hand out and his energy formed a shield that blocked Torev's sword strike easily. Torev swung a few more times with maximum effort but was unable to break the shield.
Torev growled as he continued swinging into the barrier, "Is this how you fight now? Hiding behind shields and irritating little tricks?"
Verto smirked, "It isn't just a shield." Torev's eyebrow went up as the shield glowed brightly, and he quickly glided backwards.
"Masenko-Shredder!" Verto called out.
Dozens and dozens of golden energy bullets flew out at Torev, who did what he could to dodge and deflect with his Ki Sword. A few of the bullets got through though, and he felt the need to phase out and get out of the line of fire, which then roared past and skewered the far cave wall. As Torev landed, Verto's attack faded along with the shield, though his energy was still in the form of a golden spinning ball, which became a matching sword a moment later as he pulled it to his side. A clear difference in quality could be seen at this point, as Torev's energy blade as fuzzy and erratic as wisps of energy came off of it, whereas Verto's was rounded perfectly with no energy leaking out from it.
And I can't get round the way you left me out in the open
To leave me to die!
So how can I, forget the way you lead me through the path into Heaven
To leave me behind!
"All that time in limbo you could have spent training your mind, and you didn't," Verto said.
Torev's face scrunched up with anger, "Shut up! You're not stronger than me! It is literally impossible!"
Verto shook his head, "Even your senses have dulled. No, I'm not stronger than you right now, but I've had time to polish my energy skills. Even if you are twice as strong as me, I can do damage. What did you do all this time, float around? All I see is useless rage."
Torev growled again as his golden aura brightened with lightning, "I'll show you who is useless!" He pulled his arms back, extinguishing his sword as he charged a different kind of attack. Verto's other hand went to his forehead and he abruptly phased out. Torev was smashed in the side by another Galic Fist attack, causing an additional explosion of gold that sent Torev towards the cave entrance.
Kaon looked legitimately worried nearby, "Come on Torev, get up!"
Soren was also nearby and had a different, slightly smiling expression on his face as he sweated a bit. Torev slowly got up out of the rubble he found himself in, with the top of his outfit completely gone. He was covered in scrapes and bruises at this point, but not much in the way of blood yet. He was slightly winded, but not by much as he set eyes on Verto, who had positioned himself in the exact middle of the room with his golden Ki orb still spinning in his hand.
Torev's eyes narrowed at this, "I get it, you use that Ki Orb as a quick way to attack or defend yourself in versatile ways. That's pretty smart I have to admit, even though it looks like that idiot Yamcha's attack. I bet the foes you have fought against since the Zerg don't know what to do about it."
Verto snorted slightly, "Well, I've slowly been developing it, but yeah, I store energy up naturally in my hands and use it in whatever way works. This Orb is a quicker version of it that is even more versatile. In fact, I really haven't used it in battle this much before. Speaking of which, your real handicap and therefore weakness isn't just your lack of training, it's your lack of knowledge."
Torev frowned, "What are you talking about. I have all your memories; I know just as much as you do!"
"Do you? What's the last thing about me that you remember that happened when you were actually part of me? I'm betting it's when I lost my shit and expelled you out when we were both still part of the Zerg," Verto said as he folded his arms and allowed his Spirit Orb to fade.
Torev snorted slightly, "Your point?"
Verto's smirk reappeared, "I've had a lot of training since then."
Torev's expression matched it, "Is that why you are only at half strength now?"
"Seems to be enough to deal with you."
"Perhaps I don't know all your techniques and perhaps I am limited to what Soren, Kaon and others have told me. But I do remember how to do this!" Torev dropped back as his aura flared up, charging another strong purple blast in his hands. This time Verto elected not to move, but his Orb did reignite in his hands in preparation.
"No response to this? I don't think you should just let this one go, I can fire it before you get over here again!" Torev dared. Verto's response was to ignite his Ki Sword and hold it at the ready.
Now I can't stay behind
Save me, from wreaking my vengeance
Upon you, too chilling more than I can tell
Burning now I bring you Hell!
Torev laughed, "You know as well as I do you can't absorb this without Psi energy! But if that's your defense, so be it! Super Galic Gun!"
The remainder of the overhang over the cave entrance disintegrated as Torev fired the massive beam of purple light. Verto stepped back and held his sword with both hands before turning it down and striking the edge of the beam from underneath. He was pushed back initially by the sheer force of the energy beam before he was able to channel his own energy into the sword, making it pulse with randomly brighter energy and displace some of the dust around the ground. The struggle continued for a brief moment before he was able to deflect the blast upwards. Torev watched this happen and discontinued channeling his attack before moving to guard himself. The blast ripped into the ceiling and push through until it hit a stopping point, which was Soren's barrier somewhere within the mountain. The resulting explosion obliterated the mountain above them in a blinding flash of light, scattering large chunks of rock on the cave floor. When it cleared, there was a massive opening in the mountain like a meteor had hit it. The opening was still covered in Soren's red barrier, but now the evening sky could easily be seen past it. Hundreds of feet above, Verto saw three figures just outside of the barrier, and knew who they were despite not being able to sense their presence.
Torev glanced up and saw this as well, "Oh good, another audience."
"Too bad you can't just blast this one away," Verto remarked as he brushed dirt and loose rock off his clothes.
"Well, in theory I probably could, but if Soren lets his barrier down, this party will get crashed, and I'm not satisfied yet. But I'll allow you a moment to go say goodbye to them. I'm generous like that," Torev offered.
"You're awfully confident," Verto noted as he lifted off. Torev folded his arms and watched him go without a word. Verto flew straight up until he was just on the edge of the ground level, where he found Vegeta, Seventeen and Gohan waiting just outside of the red barrier.
"Verto, who is that you're fighting down there?" Gohan asked first.
"Me," Verto replied simply.
"What kind of answer is that? Where's the detective? Where's all the cultists?" Vegeta asked in rapid succession.
"The truth, dead, and dead. You guys remember my darker self that showed its ugly face during the Zerg War? That's him, cloned out of my cells, again," Verto explained quickly.
Gohan's eyes widened, "You're kidding!"
Verto glanced down at the now slightly darker cave, "It isn't just him down there either. Look I'll explain later after I handle this. See if you can find a way past this barrier!" Verto's ears perked up when the clone in question suddenly phased in behind him, but not to attack.
Torev smirked as wide and as evilly as he could as he glanced up at the trio and nodded at them, "Sup."
"You, how?" Vegeta asked in shock.
"Oh, you know, this happened, that happened. Kinda want to eat right now, kinda want to kill him right now. It's a lot to take in. I mean just twenty minutes ago I was a helpless shadow floating around in a wasteland," Torev said vaguely.
Seventeen examined him as best he could through the barrier, "You know, for a clone, you two don't seem the same. How are you older than him?"
Torev shrugged, "Don't look at me, I didn't make the rules here, or write the DNA. But I'm not complaining. How am I supposed to have all the fun if I'm locked in a child's body anyway?" Verto scowled at the casual attitude of his counterpart and phased out.
Torev caught the attempted Galic Fist just inches away from his stomach, "Not this time!"
Verto was undeterred as he opened his hand and green energy emerged, "Final Shine!" Torev's eyes shot open just as the blast overwhelmed him and filled the dome with green light. He tumbled to the bottom a moment later, his skin covered in burns while his pants smoked lightly.
"He may look older, but he's clearly not stronger! Nice one kid!" Seventeen cheered. Verto's eyes narrowed as he sensed Torev's energy. It had gone down by quite a bit along with the damage he had suffered.
If he were a true clone of me, how come he can't use any Psi energy, or Chi for that matter? His power is clearly not sealed like mine is, or at least not that I can tell. I remember that he had to borrow it before just to even out, but that was with my body and my energy at his disposal back then. After the Overmind cloned him the first time, he was able to turn Super Mystic without a problem. What's different this time? Verto lowered back to the ground without another word and Torev took a moment to recover. Kaon briskly walked to his side as he slowly stirred and held his stomach.
Free me tonight, as the animal kings breathe their terror upon you
Caught in the moment, engaging in my
Bloodlust tonight, now I can't control my venom's flow
Get back from me demon, or be exorcised!
"Yep, that one hurt. Fuckin' kid got me good," Torev grumbled.
"My dear, you are weakened and already exhausted from travelling here and the transformation. Let me help you," Kaon offered.
Torev glared at her, "Hey, you know I finish my fights. We discussed this long ago."
Kaon closed the gap between them as her body glowed with purple energy, "Yes, but you can't be fighting at only a fraction of your real power. Let me restore it now!"
She pulled him closer and the two locked lips as her body glowed with purple energy. Torev gave in and passionately returned the kiss. Within moments, Torev's hair faded while her purple energy shifted over to him. Kaon's skin also faded from blue to its normal pale color and she fell away, feeling faint but aroused. Verto's eyes narrowed as Kaon returned completely to her half Saiyan form which most resembled Lenz no matter who was in control. Torev stood up with his fists clenched as an evil, toothy grin filled his smile. Verto looked on in alarm as he sensed the power suddenly emanating from Torev. That power was made manifest a moment later when his hair stood on end but remained black while his eyes turned red.
A deep purple aura emerged as Torev laughed while his power grew dramatically, "Oh hell yes!"
The cave glowed purple as Torev powered up while Verto could only look on in horror. He sensed Torev's energy change and become denser, signaling to him it was now Chi waves, which was more than concerning. He also sensed it rise well past his own power and beyond, which was now the bigger issue. He couldn't tell if it also healed him, but that was going to become apparent soon. Torev's aura continued churning before he held out his hands and fired off a few orange colored blasts. They bounced around the cave randomly before dispersing, but they also left a trail of fire behind. The flames increased in size and intensity, providing more than enough light for all onlookers both above and on the cave bottom.
Verto eyed the fire nervously, I should probably not get near that after she drained me, if the seal flips I'm done for.
"This is fun," Torev said.
Verto lowered into a stance while igniting a Spirit Orb in both hands, "Fun is a word. I might choose a different one."
Torev chuckled, "I'll admit it. I was a little overcome with rage upon seeing your ass again. That's just how much I missed having a body. Let's make like Saiyans and really kick it up a few notches! I wouldn't want you to leave anything on the table while I crush you!"
"You aren't the first to say that and you won't be the last. You want everything? I'll give you everything!" Verto shouted back.
Now I can't stay behind
Save me, from wreaking my vengeance
Upon you, too chilling more than I can tell
Burning now I bring you Hell!
Torev charged in at Verto, who phased out at he arrived. Bright gold light was emitted just behind Torev, only to be cancelled out when he spun and fired a spray of purple energy blasts. Verto was able to form his energy shield to protect himself. Torev slipped in through the smoke and smashed Verto in the face with his fist, sending the younger Saiyan flying back into the wall and leaving him embedded there. He didn't give him much time to recover but missed a flying knee attempt when Verto phased out. Another golden blast came sailing at Torev, but he deflected it easily with one hand. Verto came flying in with his Ki Sword, swinging it at Torev's head. Torev caught the energy blade with his bare hand and despite the blood that was drawn, held it there. Verto struggled to break it free, but Torev held it firm while he just grinned. Purple energy came from his hand and enveloped the sword, allowing Torev to hold it safely. Verto was lifted by own his sword and thrown aside, causing the sword to dissipate. Torev used the remaining energy to fire off multiple energy blasts that barely missed before crashing into the cave walls. Verto glided around the blast explosions before pulling back and charging his Spirit Orb with more energy.
Torev's grin remained as he folded his arms, "Well?" Verto swung his arm and fired the Orb this time, which sailed towards Torev with great speed.
All my emotion and all my integrity
All that you've taken from me
All my emotion and all my integrity
All that you've taken from me
Torev simply held up his hand in response and fired a counter blast, "Pathetic!"
When his blast hit Verto's golden Orb, it split into a dozen smaller blasts that surrounded him. Torev was more than a little surprised by this and quickly moved to guard himself as they homed in and hit him. Multiple explosions rocked the cave with various detonations, even putting out some of the random fires in the process. Verto wasn't done and rapidly charged his next attack while Torev couldn't see him. The smoke cleared around Torev's face just enough to see Verto phase in right before him and extend his arm as he braced it with his other. Lightning rushed out of Verto's palm and overwhelmed Torev in a heartbeat, striking at every inch of his body with pinpoint accuracy. The assault forced Torev to cry out in pain and drop to his rear on the ground. Verto discontinued the Ki-Lightning Storm and pulled back to conserve energy while he paused to see what it had done. Torev's grin was gone at this point, but he didn't look too damaged, which was concerning.
Torev wiped off his face, "I remember that technique. Is that all you got?"
Verto remained steadfast and kept his stance while both of his fists glowed gold, "You wish, I can last way longer than this."
"I can tell you're bluffing, so how about we quit wasting time?" Torev declared as his purple aura reappeared.
He phased out and rushed at Verto with such frightening speed that he couldn't react before Torev's knee was already in his abdomen. Torev grabbed a hold of Verto's shirt and threw him across the cave before phasing out and kicking him right back as if he were playing pinball. Combined blood and spit flew out of Verto's mouth as he flailed through the air. Before he could hit ground again or recover, he felt his boot get grabbed and he was yanked out of the air. Next thing he knew, his body flung into the ground face-first. Verto groaned as he was forcibly pulled upwards and swung into the ground again, this time on his back. Torev paused long enough step closer and kick Verto hard in the groin, opening up a next level of pain as he curled up in the fetal position.
Torev scowled at this, "Yeah that was a bit low, but you won't be needing your balls past today so what's the difference? Get up, you claimed you could last way longer, let's see it!"
Verto coughed up blood painfully as he held his torso and groin separately, Okay, holy crap, that boost was way more than I thought it was. No bluffs are going to get me out of this one, how the hell am I going to beat him? Torev started to lose his patience as Verto managed to get back to his knees and open his eyes. In the far corner, he saw Soren just standing there with his arms inside of his robe. He looked like he was out of breath and trying very hard at something, but it was not obvious what it was yet.
Now I can't stay behind
Save me, from wreaking my vengeance
Upon you, too chilling more than I can tell
Soul of the night, I know
Verto's eyes widened, Wait, how good could his concentration be? How much could he possibly do at once, especially containing this fight and keeping Vegeta and Gohan out of it? I don't know how much power he can muster, but if he is as tired as he looks, maybe I've got a way out of this.
Verto's thoughts were interrupted when Torev's boot found his chin. Verto felt his neck struggle to stay together as he sailed up in the air and out of control. Torev gave chase a moment later but allowed Verto to recover enough to hover as he held his head painfully with both hands.
"So, what was all that shit about if even if I was twice as strong as you, that you could do damage? Maybe your bluffs should carry a little more weight. Maybe you are more skilled than I am, but even you know that technique can be crushed with absolute force!" Torev declared. He then reached out and grabbed Verto by the throat, squeezing hard. Verto coughed and gagged but was unable to do much before Torev turned and swung him hard into the air. Torev phased out and landed a vicious kick to Verto's stomach that sent him into the cave wall at incredible speed, embedding him there. More blood poured out of Verto's mouth and severe pain from his ribs told him that at least a few were broken. Torev smirked and folded his arms as he rose up to Verto's current altitude, which was about halfway up the side of the cave to the top of the mountain. Verto winced as he glanced up at the barrier before setting his sights on Torev again.
Torev followed what he was looking at for a moment, "What do you think you'll somehow get out of this and your friends up there will pitch in? Even if you somehow get past me, Soren's barriers are perfect!"
Verto managed to grin slightly, "Yeah, I'm counting on that actually."
Torev turned his head slightly, "Dude, it literally doesn't help you at all."
Verto grinned as spread his fingers and quickly brought them up around his head, "You'll see, in a moment! Solar Flare!" Torev's eyes widened just in time to get the full blast of the bright, blinding technique. As soon as he was blinded, Verto broke out of the rock side and dropped down, channeling the majority of his energy into his finger and concentrated hard. His finger lit with bright gold and arc lightning poured off of it, but his hair faded to black at the same time.
Torev's eyes recovered just in time to see Verto aim at him, "Ki Cutter!"
Now I can't stay behind
Save me, from wreaking my vengeance
Upon you, too chilling more than I can tell
Burning now I bring you Hell!
Torev fired a counter blast that resisted the concentrated beam, but only for a few seconds before it broke through. Torev's eyes went wider as the laser shot at him with more speed than he had prepared for. It sliced through the side of his face as he watched it go by and ripped through the cave wall. The powerful Ki laser had clipped his face in a way that left a long, half-inch wide gash on his right cheek.
Torev growled and held his bleeding face as he looked back at Verto, "Damn you!"
He quickly discovered Verto was gone though and was descending towards Soren quickly. Verto had realized his small advantage and fired off several small Ki blasts at the old man on his way down. Torev fired a much larger purple blast at his counterpart, one that made escape nearly impossible, which also made Soren realize what was coming. Soren didn't have any choice and pulled his hands from his robe in order to use them. The result was Soren disappearing briefly, along with the giant barrier. Verto couldn't stop his momentum and landed hard on the ground just before Torev's blast smashed into his back and exploded. Burning pain filled Verto's entire body and he ceased to move after that point. Torev snarled and dove at Verto with his aura at its full spread, intent on ending the life of his counterpart. Just as he reached Verto, a bright flash of silver phased in before him, catching his fist. It was Gohan, having warped in with Instant Transmission and powered up to Super Mystic.
"That's enough out of you," Gohan warned. Torev pulled his fist back and phased out promptly, reappearing next to Kaon, who was still quite drained.
"Is that Lenz?" Gohan asked in shock as Vegeta and Seventeen came down from the opening in the mountain.
"Not…quite," Verto managed to whisper as he lay prone. Torev held his stance as he stood over Kaon, watching the new arrivals carefully. A bright flash next to him preceded Soren's return, where he bent down and held onto Kaon's arm.
"Come with me Lord Torev, you won't be able to beat them all," Soren suggested.
"Like Hell I can't!" Torev claimed.
"No, you won't. Two of the three maybe, but not all of them. We need to regroup, and you need to adjust to your new body. Besides, I think you've given quite a performance. I don't think he'll be able to beat you if that was the best he had," Soren said as he nodded towards Verto. The younger Saiyan was completely spent and injured badly, a fact made clear as Gohan attempted to help him up and he couldn't do much more than slump.
Torev gave in, "Fine, get us out of here!" Soren snapped his fingers and the three of them were gone in a flash, leaving everyone else behind.
Verto was able to sit up after a few moments with Gohan's assistance, though far from easily as his back continued to burn and smoke from the last attack.
"Well, now we know what the cult was for," Seventeen said as he looked around at the ruined cavern.
"Damnit, I couldn't stop it. I couldn't stop any of it," Verto whispered. He wanted to pound the floor in frustration, but his arms were numb and utterly useless.
"No, but you did well in trying. I don't think any of us could have done better under the circumstances," Gohan said in reassurance.
"So, the girl is back too? How was that even possible?" Vegeta asked.
Verto's head bled as he fell to his side painfully, "I don't know."
Gohan picked Verto up over his shoulder and held two fingers to his head, "C'mon guys, we need to get him a Senzu Bean. And we need to go tell the others what happened."
- "Hell" – by Disturbed.
A/n: For those that figured it out beforehand, congratz!
Next Time on DBV: Verto deals with the fallout of the summoning at Roshi's island, while Bulma discovers a potential solution to the cyborg problem. And a familiar figure pays a visit to the island with news about the mystery prisoner and why she must be rescued. Questions are answered, but even more are asked, as an ominous cloud hangs over the events of Earth.