Nevrrest's lengthened plume flew upward on the gust of her borrowed power, her body stretching and thickening just as it had the day she had put the numbers 0001 in Vegeta's skin. Her red feathers and scales tightened like armor, her talons sharper and longer than before. The power shot out like a tidal wave around her and she moved at Goku so quickly she seemed to vanish. Goku gave out a loud cry as his hands snapped forward, trembling with strain as he held Nevrrest by the wrist, the tips of her talons sunk into the middle of his chest.
Damn! he thought, eyes wide, She didn't waste any time and went straight for the kill!
Nevrrest grinned as Goku leapt back, putting a hand to his chest and checking the shallow wound as Nevrrest's long, powerful tail weaved.
"Sorry, Nevrrest," Goku stated, readying himself, "But I'm afraid I'm not going to be that easy to kill."
Nevrrest thickly chuckled. "A true warrior doesn't care how difficult or easy a battle will be." She flashed around him three times without even appearing to move, her hand curling up and two fingers extending – lit with energy. "Nothing matters as long as I have what it takes to win!"
The flooring fell out into the mechanical under the blast, Goku leaping into the air as crates tumbled into the hole. He jerked as Nevrrest's arms spread wide, several shelves ripping out of the floor. Goku flew forward, but the metal twisted, compacted, and slammed into a ball around him.
"Heh…" Nevrrest flashed her needle teeth. She clenched both hands, the ball growing tighter and tighter.
Vegeta nearly gave some angry and anxious outcry when rays of golden light shot through the ball and it exploded. Goku growled and moved his hands to one side, the air flashing with beams of bright blue light. Nevrrest zipped forward, every movement like a teleport. Goku screamed, unleashing the kamehameha just as Nevrrest appeared in front of him. Her hand snapped forward, taking the full force of the blast against her palm, the energy fanning out through her fingers.
She swiped the last of it aside and sprung forward, latching both hands around his neck. Goku gasped and gagged, Nevrrest rocketing them both at the wall as she strangled him. Goku twisted and gritted, moving his legs up and managing to plant both feet into her stomach. Nevrrest grinned at the blow, but the effort broke him free of her grip, leaving three red scratches on either side of his neck.
What is he doing?! Vegeta thought, climbing up some rubble to get a better view. He watched helplessly as Goku started flying through the maze of shelves, forcing Nevrrest to chase him. He could overpower her if he'd only transform! Instead he's barely holding on! Vegeta's knuckles turned white as his teeth clenched. What's gotten into that idiot's head?
Goku spun around mid-flight and thrust a blast at Nevrrest. She shot one right back, her red beam plowing over the blue orb and striking Goku in the chest. Goku cried out, his body heaving backwards. She appeared over him. Goku's green eyes flashed and Nevrrest's powerful tail weaved, rippling upward before smacking against him. Goku sank deep into the floor and Nevrrest landed on top of him, smashing him further into the crater with her fists. Goku screamed with each blow, spit flying from his mouth. Finally, Nevrrest grabbed him by the front of his shirt and blasted him point blank with the other hand.
Goku's form blew across the chamber like a bullet, driving a wicked crack through the metal flooring, the ship's shielding sparking like a lightning storm. At last he tumbled into an earlier pit that Nevrrest had created, his body suspended by tubing and wires.
"KAKAROT!" Vegeta jumped over the rubble and ran as fast as he could to the hole, his tail wrapping tightly around his waist. He jumped in and slid down the tubes, finding Goku and grabbing him by the front of his green rag of a shirt. Goku coughed and spat out a spray of blood, Vegeta's entire face twitching angrily. "Idiot. Hurry and wake up!" Goku's eyes squinted open and he grunted painfully, getting his feet under him. Vegeta grabbed him again, harshly jerking his head down to his level. "And just what the hell do you think you're doing?! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!"
"A fair question, Vegeta." Nevrrest floated down, landing atop a bent shelf high above them. "But then, you both should have known from the beginning trying to fight me was suicide." She thrust a hand forward and Goku screamed as his arms forcefully twisted behind him, his body stiff as he lifted into the air. "As promised. You'll die and then Vegeta. Don't worry, I'll make it quick. I don't delight in torturing my victims." Her eyes shifted to Vegeta. "Well…save for one very special case."
Goku cried out again as his body compacted from all sides, his bones starting to creak. He breathed heavily and let his chin fall against his chest. "…Heh…ehehehehehe…"
Nevrrest twitched back, her plume feathers stiffening. "I've never heard you laugh like that before." Her brow lowered. "What have you done?"
"Nothing yet," he answered. He lifted his head and looked at her. "I actually owe you an apology, Nevrrest. See, I haven't exactly been straight with you." He cried out as the telekinetic grip on him tightened.
"I didn't ask for an apology," she strictly stated. Her yellow eyes flashed. "I want to know what the joke is."
Goku panted. "The truth is," he continued, "I didn't push my power as far as I could. I've been holding back. By a lot."
Nevrrest's eyes narrowed. "How stupid of you." She started crushing him again. "Do you think this is a game? This is the very reason why you must die, Goku. A fool with your kind of strength can't be left to wander." Her teeth showed as he twisted and howled. "When someone says they're going to kill you, you fight back with every fiber in your body! That…is nature! I won't tolerate you being so careless!" Her aura burned with her anger. "So either fight me like you and your prince's lives depend on it, or give up and DIE!"
Suddenly, a golden aura flashed around Goku and Nevrrest stumbled back, holding her arm as she lost her telekinetic grip. Goku floated there, the aura rapidly wafting around him. "I wasn't done. See, there's a reason why I chose to hold back and keep the truth a secret. First, cause I wanted to set Vegeta free from the lie you've been tormenting him with."
"What?" said Vegeta, his eyes wide.
"You made him think all this time that he lost on Earth because he didn't take you seriously," Goku firmly continued, "Not until it was too late anyhow. But that was never the truth, was it? Vegeta's seen with his own eyes now that he never stood a chance against you. You weren't even trying on Earth. Even if he had come at you with everything he had, you still would have overpowered him with your quantum form."
Is that really it? Vegeta thought with shock, He put himself at risk based on the mere hope that it would allow me some peace of mind…? Vegeta looked down, his mind flashing with that battle and how he had fallen in shame. I do not deny, I have spent countless hours in my cell pondering how it might have ended differently. But you're right, Kakarot. It turns out I never had a chance at winning. I still do not forgive the loss…but yes…perhaps I can forgo my shame at last.
Nevrrest turned her head and spat. "So childish. You would—"
"I still wasn't finished, Nevrrest!" he barked. He eyed her with a mixture of disdain and kindness. "The second reason was for you. You see, when I push my power any further than this, I become something different. You might even say I become someone different. When I'm at my full strength, I lose my will not to hurt my opponent…sometimes, I even enjoy their pain a little." He drew a breath and reached up, tearing off the rest of his shirt and tossing it aside. "I know I told you back when you stuck these numbers on my shoulder that I was giving you your last chance. I'd like to go back on my word a little bit and give you one more chance. But this time, it really will be the last one."
Nevrrest hissed, her talons twitching. "I think it's about time…" The shelf bent as her feet gripped it. "That you gave me some respect…Kakarot!" She planted a thumb against her chest. "I am the Crimson Fighter! Leader of the new order of the universe! I don't need your pity or your second chances! So bring your wrath down on my head, saiyan! I will meet you head on!" Her face twitched with rage. "Don't you think for one second I am anything like any opponent you've fought before! I am a warrior unlike any other before me! So come at me! SON GOKU!"
Goku's gaze didn't move from her once till she had finished speaking. Then he sighed and shut his eyes, turning his head to the side. "Alright, Nevrrest. Just know…you brought this on yourself."
Goku's green boots planted as he lowered himself back to the floor, glancing over his shoulder at Vegeta. The prince acknowledged the warning and begrudgingly took cover behind the rubble, still watching with a racing heart. Nevrrest's beak twisted, her tail secretly charging an attack behind her back. Goku drew a relaxing breath and then tightened his entire body, thrusting his arms downward.
He screamed. Nevrrest's feathers were blown back from the very sound, everything around them starting to shake. The computer wailed an alarm. Giant crates toppled from their shelves and crumbled, their contents turning the storage level into a scrap-metal wasteland. Nevrrest dug her talons into the shelf she stood upon, it and the rest of them swaying and bending like trees in the wind. The scream grew louder and a crack spilt through the floor, moving its way so fast that Vegeta had to leap to the side not to fall into the fissure that formed. The crack went up the wall and continued on out of sight.
(**Scene Break**)
"Ge-ah!" Juri-dur cried, leaping backwards as, through the incredible shaking, a crack split straight through his wall, moving through his floor, and dipping back down into the deck below. Everything continued to shake.
"That power…!" he breathed, "It's…!"
(**Scene Break**)
"It's…unreal!" Laswe declared. He lost control of his hover pattern again and bounced off the wall, Horkion catching him. "Erk! I didn't even know an energy signature could get that high!"
Horkion's black pebbles were all shiny as he gazed off. "Goku…he's amazing!"
"He's insane is what he is," Laswe snapped and then shrieked like a madman as a giant crack split between Horkion's legs, "What's the goddamn monkey doing to the goddamn ship?!"
Horkion watched dumbly as the fissure shot down the hall and then disappeared into a wall.
"No wait, I can use this!" Laswe suddenly brightened. He tried to fly again and ended up just holding onto Horkion. Grunting, he tapped his fusion band. "Computer! Recognition Justiciar Laswe!"
"Recognized," it answered.
"Take the fleet out of stealth mode!" He glanced at Horkion. "This should wake anyone with energy sense up."
The computer hummed. "Acknowledged. Exiting stealth mode now."
(**Scene Break**)
Gohan's hand happily gripped Videl's waist as they walked arm around the other from the store. Videl was discussing wedding plans – a subject that always made Gohan nervous and his cheeks slightly red. He paid attention as best he could, but honestly he got so distracted just looking at her and being near her that he nearly missed all of it.
"And Dad keeps talking about having it on a boat or something, but I don't want anything that extravagant," Videl remarked, leaning into the crook of Gohan's arm as they walked, "It will draw too much attention and the last thing I want is television camera's anywhere near—" Gohan stiffened so suddenly that Videl nearly tripped. "Ow, Gohan! What are you—?!" She stared at him as he gaped up at the sky. "Gohan…? What is it?"
"Ah…ah…!" gasped Gohan, "First that insane energy the other day…the one that made my mind feel like it was exploding…and now this…Dad!"
(**Scene Break**)
Both Krillin and Piccolo turned from each other at once on the plateau where they had been conversing a moment before, their jaws agape and staring at the sky.
"Goku!" Piccolo cried.
"Where did he…it's like he just appeared out of nowhere!" Krillin declared. He ran up to the edge of the plateau and clenched his fists. "And that other energy…it's the same one I felt the day Vegeta was taken! Only this time it's different…I don't know what happened…but it feels nearly pure evil!"
"Not only that," Piccolo agreed, his face hardened and anxious, "But Goku's facing a foe so strong that he's becoming a Super Saiyan Three!"
Krillin turned rapidly. "We'll talk more later, Piccolo. I have a bad feeling about this…we better be ready."
"Hm," Piccolo nodded, turning and walking the opposite way, "Go, Krillin. Contact the others. We need to be prepared in case this fight comes back to Earth."
"Right," Krillin agreed, sweating a little as he leapt off into the air.
(**Scene Break**)
Nevrrest's fist tightened as she watched, seeing his hair growing long like he was forming his own Blechan plume, his brow becoming more pronounced like that of an oozaru, his eyes larger and fiercer. Holding back my ass! she thought angrily, He wasn't just holding back...he's been hiding an entire transformation!
She waited, the charge building on her tail out of sight. Every skilled warrior knew that when an opponent was building ki, their defenses were at maximum. Despite what a novice might think, it was actually the worst time to attack. So she waited, doing her best to weather the storm of his power, some kind of pressure building in her chest.
His power is still rising! The pressure in her chest turned into a burning knot. It's so high...it's…
At that very moment the towering shelf she perched upon gave out and crumbled beneath her. As she fell, she saw Goku flying at her, his fist poised for attack. She clenched her beak and thrust the energy beam from her tail at him from point blank range. He swatted it aside without losing any momentum, his fist impacting with her beak.
Her body went through everything. Shelves, crates, the wall, pipes, ducts, and wires - finally exiting in some dark, unknown place. But it was none so dark as her mind as she fell forward and felt something warm drip from a crack in her beak. She caught the first three drops in her palm, eyes twitching uncontrollably.
The core...Sepis is the only thing that saved me…I've been outclassed...I'm...I'm not the strongest anymore!
The dark cavity of the hole was lit by a brilliant golden light. Goku's green boots planted, his energy swollen muscles protruding through thick, golden locks of hair that hung about him like a cape. "It's over, Nevrrest," he pronounced, his voice deeper and more foreboding. Goku watched her as she stared at the blood dripping from the deep crack in her beak. "It's not very often you see your own blood, is it? I imagine that must be frightening."
Nevrrest's eyes snapped wide, her gaze shifting to him like a cornered lion. Goku took a step forward and Nevrrest reacted on instinct, instantly lashing back. Her fist swung at his face, an explosion of power sending out vibrations as Goku seized her wrist, stopping the blow before it reached its mark. Nevrrest hissed and dug her toe talons into the floor, pulling back from his grip. But it didn't loosen. She pulled harder, the floor giving out in a crater around her, slowly sinking – the saiyan unmoved.
Goku looked at her with the gaze of an angry father, slowly raising up an open palm and cracking it across her face. "That's for threatening Trunks." He hit her again. "That's for torturing Vegeta." He turned her head with the strike. "That's for all your lies." Blood and spit flew from her mouth. "That's for betraying your friends." Again. "That's for Dr. Tottle and anyone else who's suffered because of your actions." Again. "That's for the wrong you've done to yourself." His hand curled into a fist. "And this…" He reared back. "This is for threatening the Earth!"
Nevrrest's body flipped several times as she was sent tunneling through the ship's interior once again, the internal shielding desperately trying to soften the impact. But before she had even landed, she saw Goku coming at her again, his golden mane whipping as he moved. Nevrrest's eyes widened and she threw out her arms and legs, stopping her momentum dead before flying at him. She extended her claws and prepared to strike, but he appeared behind her, driving her straight down with his elbow. She probably would have gone sailing through even more layers of metal if he hadn't seized her by the tail on the way down.
"This isn't what I wanted, Nevrrest," he angrily stated, that deepened voice menacing, "But it's what you kept asking for." He spun and threw her upward, her form plowing into the next deck. She landed in a heap, rolled to her feet, and swung a punch at him as soon as he appeared. He caught it. "You've left me no choice. I'm just going to have to beat you until you're no longer able to fight back!" He drove his fist deep into her abdomen, spit and blood flying from her beak. He held onto her fist, repeating the motion again and again, his grip on her the only thing keeping her from flying.
Back down in the mechanical, Vegeta grinned cruelly, his tail whipping side to side aggressively. Nevrrest had been knocked so far into the Hammer that he could no longer see the fight. But they were still both putting out enough power for him to sense what was going on. "So Kakarot, you've finally gotten down to it." He chuckled deeply. "At this rate, it won't be long now before she's defeated."
Nevrrest's mind whirled between blows, her tail arching up jabbing like a spear at Goku's head. He simply inclined out of the way of the attack, his other hand seizing it in a fistful of scales and feathers. Nevrrest cried out again as he switched to bludgeoning her with his leg, her fist and tail now both imprisoned in his grasp.
How is this happening? she desperately thought, How could I have misjudged my opponent so drastically? I have never in my life been so sloppy! Panic shot through her body like electricity. How long has he been this much stronger than me? Has he always been this strong? Now I understand how he's managed to wreck my world so thoroughly. The position of the strongest in the universe never belonged to me – it was his all along!
She didn't know what to do. She honestly had no clue. Had something like this ever happened to her before? The panic spread so that the child in her mind was running frantic and nearly crying.
What a foolish little brat I'm being, said the warrior, her head just barely emerging from the darkness and tangles of her mind, A being stronger than me? I'm acting like that's never happened before.
The chick looked at the warrior with big, frightened eyes, the darkness and murder oozing all around her. Before?
I was crafted by circumstance and sheer power of will into what I am today, the warrior continued, her arms emerging, strands of darkness whipping around them, I have no birthright. I started out as a weakling like any other.
The bleeding chick leapt backwards with fright as the figure of an old woman suddenly appeared in her mind – a being with large, round cheeks and small, pointy horns just above her ears. Who is that? I…I recognize her!
It seems I have forgotten what brought me to this place, the warrior remarked.
It was him! the child cried, evoking the image of the small prince Vegeta.
No! the warrior snapped back, shattering the image, It was more than that. It was always more than that! The warrior looked at the image of the old woman. Have I really forgotten? Have I forsaken the promise I made?
The chick stared at the image of the old woman and suddenly gasped. Rama!
It had been practically an accident that she had ended up on Troggack after the slaughter of the Blecha people. She had been hiding in a PTO ship's garbage shoot when they had shot a load down onto the planet's surface. The trip probably would have finally done her in if Rama and Mena hadn't found her in the trash pile. They were an elderly couple too old to work and often scavenged to make ends meet. And it just so happened that the Trog people were gifted healers with a mystical river that ran in a perfect ring around the planet. Rama and Mena had taken her to that river and submerged her in that crystal waters. All her wounds had finally closed and in time – under the couple's care – she had recovered from her murderer's assault.
Though, it left her a somber child that never laughed or played. But the elderly couple didn't seem to mind. They treated Nevrrest as if she were their own daughter – and the local village was equally kind. For the time she spent there, it seemed the nightmare had ended. She forgot entirely about her strange, new power and tried to find some sliver of happiness with her adopted parents.
They quickly learned she was very helpful when it came to the local orchard. Where the residents had to use ladders to pick the fruit from the trees, Nevrrest's species' natural ability to use their energy to fly made the chore a simple task. It wasn't the large, lush fruits of Planet Blech, but still pleasant. It was there that she saw the sphere burning its way through the sky and her heart was pierced by searing hot recognition.
She told Mena.
"The monster?" he asked, trying to hide the beads of sweat on his forehead, "The same one that killed the people on your planet?"
"He's come after me!" she insisted, hugging his leg, "Please don't let him kill me again! Please, please, please!"
Mena looked off towards the village. "Okay. Go get Rama and tell her to hide with you in the caves."
She cried as he got into his truck. "No! Don't go! Stay with me! Please! He'll kill you! He'll kill you too!"
He shut the truck door and smiled at her. "Don't worry, Nevrrest. I'll round up the others and meet you there."
"No, don't go!" she screamed as he drove off.
She didn't obey him and hide with Rama. Instead, she chased after him on her tiny, little legs as the car zoomed off into the distance towards the village. As he disappeared out of sight, she clenched her fuzzy body in frustration and pushed her energy out like her father had taught her, flying into the air and continuing her pursuit. By the time she reached the village, she could see Mena again. He was at the back of a pack of fleeing villagers, mothers holding wrapped babies tightly to their chest.
"Go! Go! Go!" he urged, giving them little pushes to the back, "Is that everyone? Did everyone get out?"
Nevrrest squealed as the explosion washed over her, her hands braced in front of her face as it knocked her on her tail. Her ears rang for a full minute, her eyes squinted and blinking just as long before she could see again. Once her senses had cleared up, she clapped both hands to her beak. The village had been reduced to rubble…and everyone was dead. Their corpses were scattered around her, some bleeding and others lying there as though they had simply fallen asleep.
Including Mena.
"No…please no…not again…!" Tears welled in her eyes.
A figure moved through the smoke – a silhouette of stocky shoulders and thick, heavy muscles. Nevrrest stared at it in confusion as it came closer, revealing a pink-ish skinned man with a black mohawk. He surveyed the bodies like they were crops and then eyed Nevrrest.
He smiled. "Aww!" Nevrrest hiccupped as he dropped on one knee in front of her. "Hey, I had no idea this rotten planet had any critters as cute as this! I've never seen anything so soft and fluffy in all my life!" He giggled. "Hey there, little guy! Sorry if I scared you. Don't worry, I'm supposed to avoid hurting the wildlife, so you're safe!" Nevrrest continued to stare as he reached into his belt and broke off a piece of a ration bar. "Here! You wanna snack? Come get the snack!"
"You're…you're not him," Nevrrest said with confusion.
"Eh?" he blinked, "You can talk?"
"If you're not him…why did you hurt my friends?" She hiccupped and tears soaked into her feathers. "Why did you kill Mena?!"
"Well this is embarrassing," he remarked, lowering the piece of ration bar and rubbing the back of his head, "You're some kind of kid, aren't you? Well that's a real disappointment." Somehow through her childish blubbering and the fiend still blushing happily at her appearance, the truth came out. The soldier threw back his head in a roaring laugh. "You're kidding me! Your planet got cleared and that made you think you were somehow special?! Good grief, you're ignorance makes you even cuter." He poked her fluffy belly. "Happens all the time. It's what we do in the ol' PTO."
"We?" she asked, "So you're in a team with the monster that killed everyone at home?"
He laughed again. "Team? Kid, we're an entire army. There's literally billions of us. The guy who cleared your planet was nothing special and neither am I. We're all just working a job." He uncrossed his legs and stood up. "And on that subject, I got some bad news for you, cutie. Company policy says that if we run across any refugees we got to wipe them out. Can't have any survivors challenging the buyer's claim and all that."
"Buyer?" she helplessly asked, "What buyer?"
"Jeez, what backwater planet did you come from, fuzzy? The people who bought your planet of course." Nevrrest's large, magenta irises turned to dots. "Planets sell for more than just about anything in the galaxy! Not that my cut of the money is really fair. Can you believe they expect me to clear three planets this month? Three! That barely gives me any time to enjoy the sights." Nevrrest was shaking, as he pointed his palm at her. "Ah well. It was nice chatting with you, cutie, but I do have to get back to work. Don't worry, I'll vaporize you completely so that you probably won't even feel anything. Cute little thing like you will probably go to Heaven!" His palm started to glow as it charged. "Honestly, when you think of it that way, you should be thanking me."
The attack, however, was interrupted by the sound of his scouter beeping rapidly. He grunted with confusion and touched it, taking a step back as a bright yellow haze glowed around the outline of the chick's body. "For money…?" she hissed, "Mom and Dad…and everyone…that's why we had to die?!"
The soldier wasn't even listening. His jaw was slack and trembling as the number on his scouter rose. "Five-hundred…seven hundred…uh! A thousand?!"
The village huts cracked and toppled as the ground shook, bolts of lightning shooting out from her tiny, fluffy body. Tears fell from her eyes like a waterfall, her gaze narrowed and trembling with rage. "And you…" she pronounced, "You killed Mena…and all my friends! I…!" She threw back her head and screeched, the ground cracking beneath her. "I will never forgive you! Never! Never! NEVER!"
In the darkness of her mind, the bleeding chick considered this memory. Yes, I suppose I nearly did lose that battle. I couldn't even fight back then – I only knew how to lash out angrily.
Yes, the warrior agreed, At the end of my strength, I put all my power into one attack, literally leaping straight through my opponent's torso.
The chick squinted her eyes sadly. I remember the ones who had escaped the village returned and started to sing for me. I felt so strong. Like no one could ever hurt me or anyone again. She looked up, her body in reality still being broken by Goku's kicks. Is that what I should do? Put all my power into one attack?
Nonsense! the warrior snapped, I don't need to do anything so drastic. Come now. I know there was something more important I have to remember than that…
The singing of the village survivors, returned to watch the battle, echoed through her mind. It summoned her flight as she flew, fist first, through the wicked soldier. Broken and beaten, she lay in the dust, watching with glazed eyes as the cored out man fell, his eyes filled with the horror of death he had brought to so many but had somehow never known. The hands of the villagers passed over her body, lifting her up and carrying her, her tiny limbs limply spread to the sides.
When she awoke, she was in Rama's bed. The elderly Trog sat in a chair nearby, her hands rested in her lap, still as a statue. As Nevrrest stirred, Rama's baggy eyes moved to her slowly and she stood without a word, preparing her a meal. Nevrrest said nothing as well, gazing solemnly at the sheet-covered body lying on the table where the three of them once ate together. Rama stood over Nevrrest as she ate her soup, not speaking until she had finished.
"The stranger's ship has been moved to where it won't be easily found," she stated, taking her bowl, "You must take it and leave."
"What?!" she cried, "Rama, what are you saying? You want me to go away?"
"They say the sky with the stars is a big place," she continued as she cleaned the bowl, "Even an army won't find you easily. Though, you'll have to abandon the orb the soldier came in as soon as possible. It's not hard for one to find something that belongs to them."
The child's face hardened. "But how long must I hide? And when can I come back?"
"Hiding isn't an option for you," Rama strictly stated, "You must never linger in one place again."
Her eyes widened with despair. "So you want me to go away…forever?" Rama didn't answer, suds rising in the sink as she washed. Nevrrest clacked her beak stubbornly and pounded a fist into the bed. "No! I won't do it!"
"You cannot remain here," Rama answered, unmoved, "More soldiers will surely come to avenge their fallen comrade. And to finish the job he started."
A tremor of fear went through her and she gripped the bedsheet. "You mean…more people will come to kill everyone…?"
"Yes."
"No! I won't let them do that!" She leapt out of bed and padded up to Rama. At first she stood there helplessly, but then she felt resolve as she was again filled by the villager's song. "If more monsters come, I'll just fight them! I'm not weak like I was back home and I'm getting even stronger! I'll…I'll practice! I'll get lots of exercise and then—"
Rama's hard, wrinkly hand struck her across the face, leaving a red mark on her beak. "Stupid girl," she growled, eyes wide and shaking, "How dare you say something like that? Is that what you want? To be a hero? Do you know what heroes do, girl? They die. Just like my husband." Her words hurt worse than the blow. Nevrrest looked at Mena's covered corpse on the table. "Yes, look at it, girl." She seized her by the wrist. "In fact, have a better look."
Nevrrest squealed and squawked with protest as she hauled her over the table, moving back the sheet to reveal Mena's ashen faced. Nevrrest held her beak and tears welled in her eyes.
"Don't cry!" Rama barked. She knelt before her and put her hand to her chest. "You must harden your heart, child. From now on, death will follow you wherever you go. Accept it and move on. Now that your great power has been revealed, the ones who took you from your parents will always be at your doorstep."
Nevrrest's throat was hot and dry. "Rama, what do I do? What do I do?!"
"There's only one thing you can do. You must survive. The universe is a savage and cruel place. And if you wish to change it, you must learn the name of the strongest alive. And you must replace him. Create a universe where such monsters are unable to exist! Then…maybe your foolish ideas will do some good."
"The name…" Nevrrest said as Goku's leg reared back again, "Of the strongest…"
"But Rama," the child begged, "What about you…?"
The old Trog stood and squared her shoulders. "If you really wish to do something for me…" She looked sharply back at her. "Then avenge us, child. Avenge us!"
Goku's leg swung at Nevrrest's ribs, but her hand caught him by the knee. Goku tipped up his head with surprise, Nevrrest's arm trembling as she held him back. "Sorry to have kept you waiting so long," she hissed, "And thank you for the beating. I needed it…to clear my head!" They pushed apart and leapt back, each landing on one foot. Nevrrest's scaly side bruised and bled, but she stood tall. "I was told long ago, that if I was to create a universe where monsters couldn't survive, I had to first learn the name of the strongest and replace him. I thought that name was 'Frieza'. But I was wrong…"
She clenched a fist and a new explosion of red enveloped her quantum form, her neckband glowing bright. "As it was ten years ago, to this great goal, the culling of Vegeta is secondary! I will be the one who shapes the fate of the universe! And now I know the true name of the one I must replace…" She pointed, eyes narrowed and then wide. "It is you…Kakarot Son Goku!"