Yo! Son Goku and friends! Bibidi Saga (Chapter 8)
Yamcha
TWANGG!
"Hyah!"
Yamcha pounced wildly under the searing low red lights of the chrome room. Gravity bared down on him as he leaped from wall to wall, striking the air in between lunges. The wind snapped and broke out in tiny sonic booms over and over as he leapt. Each pounce caused a sizable reverberation to bang around the rectangular box. The sounds only grew in tenacity the more he got into it before:
"AWOOOOOOOOOOOO~"
DONGG!
The rectangular room was no longer properly rectangular, a massive dent poking outside the box almost akin to a wart in the metal.
"Yamcha! Ease up!" Bulma shouted from the rafters. "You've already outrun the limit you set up! You're gonna need to recharge the room if you intend on beating up on it!"
Yamcha pulled a breath from deep within his diaphragm as he mimed a martial arts kata, slowly meeting his palms in the middle, touching them and letting loose the last bits of air in his system.
"Phu!"
Shu~
His frame popped and the sweat shot out everywhere onto the chrome tiling.
"That's like really gross that you do that." The scarred blue haired executive made sure to comment over the speakers as The Wolf shook out his hair.
"Why do you come and watch me every time then?"
"Uhh, maybe I'm afraid you'll mess all my hard work up!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
"Limits are meant to be broken, babe. If your trinkets don't get the job done then you just gotta work harder on the next project."
"Oh my gosh~" Bulma let out as she pulled at her skin with frustrated claws and rosy red cheeks. "I wouldn't have to go around fixing everything if you just didn't break it in the first place!"
The Wolf met her eye line from down in the gravity field, staring right into her soul. Bulma stopped talking for a moment, holding her breath.
"Where's Trunks at?"
"... Ahemn. I think he's at Goku's."
The Wolf nodded as he picked up his white gi and turned off the gravity alteration from the console on his end down on the ground floor.
Dyuuuuu~
Copper
Water from on high in the aquatic base dripped down and splashed onto the green and stone grey concrete of the floor. Silver spared a glance towards the water at the edge of the pier, tapping his finger at the edge of the table. He took a breath sharp in through his nose and let it out at the sight of his commanding officer.
"Sup, Copper."
"Silver."
"So?"
"... I know."
"Do you think she's dead?"
"I guess that's the only logical answer."
"..."
"..." Copper put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the table.
Both of them were in their twilight for sure, many a grey hair, crows feet, wrinkles. Silver was lucky enough to keep most of his hairline but they were old heads now, those 10 plus years had done a doozy on these two.
"The Eternal Dragon can wish for anything, can't it?"
"Mmhmm. That's what it says in legend."
"Then we've gotta wish Violet back."
"But what if this is what she wants?"
"..?"
"Isn't that selfish? Just to try and force someone back into life once they're gone? That's even running with the idea that she's dead. What if she's not and she's just done with this life."
"Nah. That's not real. She loved this shit." Silver replied as his face fell into his palm.
"So you say. But what if the afterlife is much more desirable than this one? Wouldn't robbing her of that luxury take it away?"
"You're making a lot of assumptions, General."
"Perhaps."
Boip!
The base dripped rhythmically over and over again as Copper scratched the now scar running along his face and near his ear.
"We never got to make our wish." Silver lamented as he crossed his arms behind his head and leaned back, gazing up at the running water and pipes bolted along the ceiling.
"We didn't, did we?"
"Nope. Probably the craziest day I ever had, besides getting faded by a little kid and blowing up his cloud with an RPG."
"Then is it time?"
"Time for what, General?"
"We wish back Violet, right here, right now?"
"I thought you said that was selfish."
"Who said I wasn't selfish?"
Silver ran his hair through his half orange, half properly silver waft of hair and smiled deep.
"Touché."
Drip!
"But how are we gonna get The Dragon Balls?"
"The Radar. We still have it from last time, come on, let's go check it out."
Silver knocked the chair over and didn't care enough to stand it back up, marching through the dripping cavern and hot on the heels of his commanding officer. Copper jogged through the corridors to get to the:
Booty
room. He flung open the door and all manner of gold, jewels, electronics, weapons, and the like were neatly packed into their own section. The Dragon Radar stood out in the middle of an aquatic locator and a computer terminal.
"But boss, I gotta keep it 100."
"What is it, Colonel?"
"Last time we failed because we weren't strong enough. We need to take precautionary measures so that next time we search for them we're strong enough to dissuade the competition."
"..."
"I don't know Who the hell those guys were but they were damn strong and there were a lot of em'. We only fought that bear guy or whatever but there's gotta be tons of fools looking to make a quick buck off The Dragon Balls if the rumours are true and The Eternal Dragon really does grant any wish."
"Right."
"So..?"
"So what?"
"Where are we gonna go to get stronger? It's not like we don't train down here but…"
"Hmm. You're right." Copper relayed as he stroked his firm chin.
Silver clicked his tongue in and breathed out a heavy sigh.
"Wait a second."
"What is it, General?"
"Tao."
"Mercenary Tao?"
"Yes, Tao. He was employed after your defeat and supposed execution and Blue's desertion after his fall in that underground cave."
"Real shit..?"
"Mmhmm. I wonder if he's still got the same calling card and number."
Silver pumped his fist and grabbed tight around the seat as Copper plopped down on it and jammed his fingers into the terminal keys, searching up the right number. He found it in the database and wrote down a list of possible numbers.
Swashhhh~
After breaching the waters, the pair landed on the beach and called the first.
Rrrrringgg!
"The number you have dialed is no longer in service."
Boop!
"Ayy bruh, I'm trine ta sleep! Knock it uoff!"
Rinngggg!
"This is Mercenary Tao's Killing Service, if you are hearing this message it is either because I have quit the business or I have been compromised in some way. Don't leave a message or I'm coming for you next."
Booop!
Copper and Silver blinked and their eye contact lasted for a while before the pair finally hung up and Silver brought out his phone instead.
"... Huh!?"
"What is it?"
"Apparently Mercenary Tao got arrested like four years ago or something. Wow. And he hasn't escaped either?"
"Unreal." Copper replied as he laid back on the grass. "That's something else."
"Damn! So how are we gonna get any stronger?"
"We might have to give up the ghost."
"And leave our girl hanging like that!?"
"You putting words in my mouth now, Colonel."
"My bad."
"... But what do we do?"
Copper shot up and gazed longingly at the shimmer afternoon oranges bouncing off the slow waves. Each layer of water lapping at the shorefront brought him closer to an idea, etching slowly at his lips before they finally parted.
"I heard that Mercenary Tao is affiliated with a martial arts school called the cranes. Do you know anything about that?"
"Nah." Silver replied.
"Search it up."
"Right."
"..."
"Yeah, right here. Tienshinhan is the only three time champion of The Tenkaichi Budokai Series. He has renounced his involvement with The Crane School but he was their star pupil in The 22nd Budokai…"
"Interesting."
"Well, take a look at this, boss." Silver stated, shoving his phone into the black man's hands. "Hard to miss a guy who looks like that."
"Seriously."
"So?"
"I guess we try and find him. If he's won the tournament three times then he's bound to have some tricks up his sleeve we might be able to plunder."
"That's exactly what I was thinking, boss."
"Let's get to work." Copper smirked, dusting the sand off his pants and walking out into the grassy jungle.
"Let's go!"
Pilaf
"What are we doing now, Sire?" Shu asked as he wiggled into his bushy ninja suit, fluffy tail wailing and wagging as he squeezed into the costume.
"I've got connections, Shu. And I've just come up with the best idea I've had in a while. Mai!" The Blue Imp yelled over the intercom.
The woman in question raised a brow as she scrubbed her teeth violently with a toothbrush, staring blankly into the imperfections and growing wrinkles in her skin.
"Mai! Mai are you there!? Don't tell me you've got your airpods in!"
"Gaglalalalalul~ Spatoi! Yes, Emperor. I can hear, I was just brushing my teeth."
"Oh. Well… that's no excuse!"
It would appear that Pilaf had installed speakers in practically every room in the facility. Speakers in the bathroom, speakers in the bedrooms, speakers in the hallways. It was practically impossible to be rid of Pilaf's nasally voice wherever you went. Speakers disguised as teddy bears, speakers disguised as simple glass cups. There were even speakers in the soda machine, one for each flavour.
"Of course not, Emperor." Mai remarked as she walked out of the bathroom in her white nightgown and changed into a routine faded cauliflower blue trench coat and black boots. She yawned with the weight of the world before looking out into the sandy streams of the desert from her window.
"Mai! Get your butt in here!"
"I have to put on my eyeshadow, Emperor."
"... Ahemn~ take your time."
"Thank you."
Shu and Pilaf stood shoulder to shoulder practically before The Blue Imp forced space by sidling away and whistling lamely out into the open air. Shu's dog nose perked up and sniffed the air a few times for good measure only for him to take on an attack stance and backdash away.
"Sire! That's disgusting! Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice, that's going too far!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Shu."
"..."
The pair stared down like rival gunslingers at sunset and not like two dorks taking on martial arts stances because Pilaf farted.
"Your move, Shu." Pilaf remarked as he took on a phoney knife edge guard.
The two circled around each other until Mai cracked her neck on both sides and yawned again, stepping into the room from the hall.
"Awuuuughh~ … What's that smell?"
"..."
"Ehh, don't worry about it."
"Alright! Here's the plan you boneheads. You seein' this?" Pilaf motioned to the big screen smack dab in the middle of the room with a gloved pointer finger item. Shu and Mai took their seats at the table and each clasped their hands diplomatically. Images displayed on the smart board as he ran down the operations. "This! Is Mount Five Element."
"What's Mount Five Element got to do with anything, Sire?"
"Can it, Shu! I'm not finished!" Pilaf's head ballooned up to epic proportions.
"Sorry bout dat."
"Ahemn! So Mount Five Element is rumoured to be a gateway to another world."
"Another world?"
"Yes! A world parallel to this one! We've only had setback after setback on this godforsaken planet. Perhaps it's time to relocate and set up my empire there!"
Clap… Clap… ClapClapClapClapClapClap!
"It's so beautiful I could cry…"
"I am crying." Mai relayed as she stood up and gave the idea roaring applause, tears streaming down her face.
"Isn't it perfect!? We'll finally have a chance to start fresh! We build the best set of Pilaf Machines we've ever built and we go exploring."
"Wonderful, Sire… but what's at Mount Five Element? Surely they're not gonna just let us have our cake and eat it too. Not for free at least, not with our luck." Mai presented as she sat down and brought out a comb to smooth out the rest of the frizz from the morning.
"I'm glad you asked…" Pilaf led on as he clicked on his remote and brought up a relevant slideshow presentation. "Rumours have it that it is guarded by a behemoth and the portal itself is some sort of furnace."
A crude, gangly, childish caricature of a demonic being was scribbled onto the board, big bug eyes and all as the 'furnace' in question was:
"Ehh… you're Art, is getting betta', Sire."
"Thank you."
"But.. a furnace… Sire?"
"I don't make the rules, Shu! Damn!"
"Ehhh~ sorry, Sire." The dog whined as he let his maw drop onto the yellow table he inhabited.
"This has the potential of being our biggest job yet. Maybe I'll consider raising both of your pay if this operation goes through."
Mai and Shu shot hyped up looks at each other before The Dog raised a brow at the idea.
"But uhh… Sire? Who's to say that Zeni is any good on the other side?"
"Yeah. What are we gonna do then?"
"You idiots! We've already come up with the government mandated P-Bucks in one of our earlier debriefings! All we gotta do is not mess this plan up and we'll be drowning in the dough! If we manage to set up my empire! P-Bucks are going to be the most valuable currency in the world!"
"Of course, Sire." They both replied in tandem.
"Now, intel has it that there are also illusions and monsters hiding in the trail up the mountain. We'll need to prepare accordingly. I don't want either of your lacking preparation skills to be the reason this plan falls through, you hear me!?"
"Yes, Sire…"
"Excellent. Now uhh, who's that?" Pilaf asked, pointing at the point of interest behind the three of them, plug standing in the hallway.
"Who's what, Sire?" Mai asked before turning around in her chair and leaning her left arm over the back rest.
Cell Jr. Vs The Pilaf Gang
Objective: Find out who the intruder is!
Three of the total four occupants in the room were tiny men. Pilaf wasn't very tall and Shu was a dog. The strange spotted neon critter looked like a blue cockroach with a facemask. Mai stood head and shoulders over the creature, hands on her hips as she raised a brow.
"You get lost, little guy? You're not supposed to be here." She remarked, furrowing her brow at the inhabitant existing during one of their debatably most 'important' meetings. "I'll give you one warning." Mai prefaced, squatting down to eye level with the blue bug creature, miming a pointer finger to assert dominance.
The creature acted fast, grabbing onto the index she presented and whirlwind judo slamming her onto the tile in a fearsome display, the creature's sleek black wings beating wildly to facilitate the attack.
Fwumpp!
"Oh! Shu! He's a threat! Distract him while I go get in the Pilaf Machine!" Pilaf relayed as he scampered out of the room, almost tripping over himself twice.
"Shoot!" Shu shouted as the creature made stern eye contact with him, Mai already seeing stars through swirling dizzy eyes. "Duuhh… Uhhh… stay back! I know ninjutsu!" The Dog claimed as he unsheathed the blade from its sheath.
The blue critter prowled around the briefing room, stalking Shu like a predator, both of them taking a clockwise rotation for their engagement. Something caught the eye of the Cell look-alike and it shot a glance at a cup on the table. Shu spared a response glance for where his foe was looking only to spot a leftover pudding cup from his breakfast.
"You hungry?"
The creature only growled in response, furthering Shu's commitment to his stance.
"Don't make any sudden moves now. I'll make you regret it."
Znnnnk.
"Shu! Get out of the way you idiot! Super Special Pilaf Punch!" The Blue Imp cried as he leapt out of the ceiling with an epic superman punch from the rafters with his indigo coloured egg shaped robot.
DONKK!
"Owhh~ great heavens!" Pilaf yelped as he was parried effortlessly by the neon coloured bug child and thrown right to the back wall. "Oof." He let out, laying lifeless on the floor, defeated.
The Cell Jr. took calculated and deliberate steps forward, edging Shu to retreat and bump the table by accident.
"Oh boy~" He flinched hard as hell as soon as he made contact with it.
The pudding cup flopped off the table but surprisingly stuck the landing upright. The blue bug child's nose twitched a few times before he took a low crawling stance. Shu's eyes widened in surprise and he dove for the food, snatching it up with a combat roll. The Cell Jr. backdashed in response, creating more distance.
"You want this?"
"..."
The blue bug child didn't say a word, only continuing to harass The Dog as they stared down.
"You don't seem all that bad. How bout you just take some of these and go?"
"What!?" Pilaf exploded from behind the glass of his Pilaf Machine. "Shu! That's my pudding! I bought that Tapioka for me! I can't believe you had some!"
"It didn't have youa' name on it, Sire."
"Rrrrrgh~" Pilaf growled as he struggled to get the mobile unit to stand up right.
Shu motioned over to the refrigerator on the opposite side of the room, past the table. He opened it up and there it was, a goldmine of pudding cups ripe for the taking. Cell Jr. made sure to keep a bit of distance between it and The Dog but Shu dropped his guard utterly to reach for a few of them.
"Shu! I command you to stop! Don't feed the enemy!"
Shu winced as he gave the item to the blue bug child, hand teetering and tottering the whole way before the handoff. Cell Jr. snatched it up and eyed it curiously. The creature tore off the wrapper and spilled a bunch of it in the process of childhandling the product.
"Oh No! I just had that cleaned!"
Cell Jr. put the white plastic up close and personal, almost touching its right eyeball against the goo before it dialed it back and proceeded along with a taste test. After the first bit of dull, then potent flavouring the blue bug child went to town on the pudding, gobbling it up and doing the same with the next cups in line as Shu handed them off the shelf like they were on a conveyor line.
"No! My pudding! You monster!"
Cell Jr. truly tore through the cups, some it scooped up with its surprisingly human hand, some it squeezed until the goop shot out, some cups it lapped up with just the tongue. Soon enough, Cell Jr. had its fill and sat limply on the ground floor, satisfied.
"You good?"
The blue bug child only blinked a few times, face full of pasty gelatinous leftovers, unaware of any sort of table manners and clearly not bothered by the pudding plastered on its eyebrows.
"Let me just erhhh~ wipe that off foya'." Shu remarked as he took a table cloth and dabbed at the white skin around the bug's mouth.
"Shu!" Pilaf roared as he finally hopped out of the machine and broke out into a run across the room. "What are you doing!? That's my- Guhuck!"
Whamm! Skweeeee~Thumpp!
Pilaf slid across the room, his own momentum used against him as Cell Jr. backfisted his face.
"Ehhehh~"
Cell Jr. met the eye line of Shu and took a courteous bow before him, kneeling in a particular position.
"What's he doin'?"
"I think he's kneeling for you, Shu."
"That's not fair! I'm The Emperor."
"We're aware, Sire, but I don't think that's gonna make him see things any different." Mai remarked as she pointed down at the blue bug child.
It placed its hand across the black chest it possessed, insect-like plating.
"He thinks you're the top dog just because you gave him some pudding? What a world we live in." Mai remarked as she scratched the side of her head.
"Well uhh, whatever this thing is looks pretty strong. Maybe we could test The Pilaf Machines against him."
"Rrrrr~ you think this ant can beat our machines!?"
"Sire, he Just beat you up."
"Did he?"
"... I didn't see anything, did you?"
"Nah, me neitha'."
"Good." Pilaf inserted as he coughed into his hand and strolled up, face to face with the bug child.
Once in range, Cell Jr. stood to its full height, barely edging out Emperor Pilaf and looming over him.
"... You think you're hot stuff, huh? How about we see what you got?"
Cell Jr. sharpened its already thin eyes and accepted the challenge.
"Can you handle the obstacle course?"
The blue bug child evaded the crashing walls of the palace with snappy evasive maneuvers combining jumps, leaps, slides, and bursts of flight with its wings. Cell Jr. ran the gambit between high speed athleticism and sheer brute force, as it crashed through the walls that stood in its way during its runthrough of the concrete maze.
"Oh no! Not the obstacle course! But can he handle the sunlight room?"
"..." Cell Jr. sat by his lonesome, staring blankly up at the bright blue sky as the sun bared down on the glass.
Fwoffff~
Fire broke out onto the blue bug child's frame but he swatted it out like nothing happened.
"Oh no! Not the sunlight room! But can he handle the pinballs?"
Titanic glittery pinballs bounced around the carnival-like room at a breakneck pace, shooting wildly and breaking out of the manipulatable walls that Pilaf used to his advantage. Cheery jingles blared out into the room as Cell Jr. dipped, dove, ducked, and dodged around them before deciding against it. The blue bug child stuck out its hand and palmed a golden pinball and turned it to dust with nothing more than a mere squeeze. The other two barreled onto its location only to suffer the same disintegration with two sweeping kicks, turning the bronze and silver orbs into dusty flakes.
"Oh no! Not the pinballs! But can he handle basic literature?"
"..."
"Ha! Looks like we found his weakness! Take that."
"The book's upside down, Sire." Shu remarked as he flipped the script. The Dog guided his little paw across the line and read it out loud with the blue bug child
"Two… plus… two equals… four."
"Damn! He's perfect!"
"Well. You want to try and see if he can beat the combined might of The Fifth Generation Pilaf Machines, Sire?"
"He's got to have some sort of weakness! Screw it, I won't take this disrespect lying down!"
Cell Jr. VS The Pilaf Gang (For real this time)
Objective: Determine how strong this little bastard is!
The sandy streams outside the pyramid of Pilaf's design cut across the dunes. Cell Jr. stuck out like sore thumb, his neon blue body contrasting easily against the khaki colour of the minerals surrounding them. The Pilaf Machines were three in number, one tall bulky unit, one short and stout unit, and another with long ostrich-like legs. The big bodied machine was the only one to house a member of the gang in something that didn't resemble a pod. Both of the other machines served to place the pilot in something resembling a sphere. Machine guns and other armaments were in place to deal serious damage to anything that moved. The wind kicked up again and the previously immaculate paint job of each Pilaf Machine was weathered by the silky corrosion of the sand.
"Okay, you little rascal! You have until the count of three! On three we'll start the bout! Got it!?"
Cell Jr. just stood there, eyes written with animalistic intent as it stared down Emperor Pilaf.
"One! Two~ Fire!"
Ratatatatatata~
The sand sprinkled and sparkled under the burning gunfire as Cell Jr. sidestepped and dodged around it with ease. The minerals kicked up and shot out in wild waves as it dashed around the plains.
FWOFFFFF~
Shu pressed down on the console of his ostrich-like machine and a top nozzle sprouted from the metal on its top side. Out of the apparatus sprouted a gigantic gout of flame, searing the sand to melty goop.
Fwsht!
Cell Jr. zipped around at a breakneck pace, avoiding all of the gunfire, actual fire and:
Ga-thunk!
"Deploying missiles, Emperor!" Mai shouted as she jammed her fist on a big red button inside her vehicle.
Vyuuuun! Bah-BOOOOOMMMM! Skwoffffffulll~
Dusty sand, smoke, and wind filled the atmosphere as the chunky explosions rocked the earth around them. A sizeable dune of black clouded the area in front of them as the concussive blast rocked outwards, fog and all.
"I can't see, Sire!"
"That's what the radar is for, idiot!" Pilaf yelled back before he realised Cell Jr. was stuck to the outside glass of his unit. "Shu! Mai! Help me!"
"Coming, Emperor!"
BONKK!
Pilaf felt the impact as the top part of his machine dented inwards and caved in on his skull.
"Doi~" He let out dumbly as Cell Jr. backed off into the winding sands of the desert outside Pilaf Castle.
Shu and Mai shot a few disconcerting glances back at each other before admitting defeat and bowing down before the might of the blue bug child.
"You win or whateva'."
"Colour me surprised. We lose again." Mai stated as she let her head fall into her closed fist.
"Hey, we gave it a good old college try."
"I'm not a fan of these all effort no results things we got going on." She remarked as she picked up the egg bot and threw it over the shoulder of her mech suit.
"Me neitha' but the kid's still here, look."
Cell Jr. looked out into the hot sands at noon, a bit forlorn with a pinch of confusion added into the mix.
"You okay there, buddy?" Shu asked as he opened up the hatch and got out of the machine, dusty sand still smoking and wafting out into the aether.
"..."
The Dog and the blue bug child stood next to each other, staring out at the streaming dune-laden beyond. Shu furrowed a brow, awaiting a response from Cell Jr.
"... What am I?"
"Excuse me?"
"..."
Tien
Tien zapped a few logs in the brick stove of a fireplace sitting in the middle of their cabin lounge, ushering forth a bombastic flame.
Zzzt! Fwoffff~
Tien let out a deep breath and meditated in front of the warmth. All eyes closed. In the dark he sent out a pulse of Ki Sensing only to receive familiar information. The Three Eyed Man shot up to his feet and sprung into action across the house, landing in front of the door and swinging it open mid-knock.
"Duhh~ how'd you know?"
"Hey, Krillin. Been a while."
Fwuuuuuu~
"Yeah, it has, you mind if we talk a bit?"
"Sure."
Klm.
"Make yourself at home."
"This is excellent. Wow." Krillin remarked as he eyed the homely design of the cabin logs, and rustic architecture. "This is a sight for sore eyes. The apartments in South City are kinda… I don't want be a bigot or anything but West City had it made with its temporary livings."
Tien smiled at the words of his friend before offering up a hand. Krillin met it and the two shook and embraced in a show of camaraderie.
"Thanks, Krillin."
"Nah. There's nothing to thank, you said you built this place from scratch right?" Krillin asked as he rubbed his hand along the brick foundation of the fireplace.
"Basically, yeah."
"Whyewh~" South City's Superman whistled as he gazed up at the wooden rafters and various guns strewn about and placed on the many mantles. "No one's surviving a break-in here."
"No sir! Ha-Ha."
"What do you need guns for?"
"For their protection, Krillin. If they bust in here, I might as well use a gun. If I punch em', they might turn to dust."
Krillin's chortle echoed throughout the house as the fire beside them crackled and popped.
"Ain't that the truth."
"That and… of course. Launch. She taught me how to shoot and usually we go do that once a week or so…"
"Yeah…"
"What are you in for?" Tien asked as his three eyes glared down at the smaller man.
"Honey, you didn't tell me we were having guests."
"I didn't know either."
"Hey, Launch."
"Hiii~ Krillin! I have some cookies if you want to wait."
"Gosh no, I couldn't. I didn't come here for that anyway."
"Then what did you come for?" Launch questioned earnestly as she ironed out her apron with her hands and smiled.
"I have a request."
"What is it?"
Cell
Zyerrrnt!
"Move it, rejects! Real citizens coming through!" An officer barked as he banged his baton against the bars.
Klanngg!
"Hey fuck you, man! Me and my homies Hate the opps!"
Cell shot a hoop from across the court only to have the nearby prisoners stand there in awe.
"Man this Sucks! Muhfucka' good at everything he touch!"
"Hold that. I'm glad he's on my team." An older man remarked before getting shoved to the side by another inmate, nevertheless still laughing about it.
"Oh shit… Superman's here. Be cool."
Everyone on the cement got put on ice, chilling out immediately as he walked out into the courtyard with another bald man in tow.
"Who the hell issat?" A particularly colourful inmate questioned with high eyebrows.
Tien's third eye scanned the entirety of the block within a matter of seconds before settling in on the strange orange and green fusion, the orange jumpsuit not looking particularly fashionable on his bug-like frame.
"He with the opps? Yo dude, you get Tivo on that thang?"
"AIIGHKKK!" The crowd broke out in uproarious laughter and goonery.
Tien raised a brow before Krillin waved him off.
"They're just having fun. Don't take it personal. I know I'd be looking for an excuse to laugh if I got dealt a bad hand like them."
"..." The Three Eyed Man stepped forward and opened the gate to the basketball court. Cell stared back with the intensity of a lifetime, stunning Tien to the very core of his being.
"You delivered. Krillin."
"I always do."
A sly smirk tore across Cell's face as soon as Tien entered into striking range.
"A rematch, huh?"
"I only lost because my preparations were inadequate."
"Whatever gets you to sleep." Tien remarked as he threw his white tank top into the fence, rattling it from the force.
"Yo they bout to box! Get his ass!"
"Nah, fuck Cell. Me and my homies Hate Cell!"
"Do a flip!"
The inmates corralled around the court, bumping and jumping, goofing and gaffing, leering and laughing. It was more like a mad house than a prison yard.
"You guys might wanna get back." Krillin relayed as he put his hands on the prisoners still inside the basketball area.
"But first."
"..."
Krillin leaned against the gate door, blocking the inmates from breaching their contest.
"I have a couple questions."
Tien VS Cell
Objective: The reason for fighting!
"Why do you fight, Tienshinhan?"
"..."
"I know my reason. I have limits, I must know where they lie. Apparently my creation was the result of decades of hard work and study of genetics and biotechnology. As far as I am aware, I was deliberately crafted to be a fighting machine. That being the case, why would someone like You fight? You will eventually break down and decay. I respect your effort and you have shown high competency by beating me once before… but I will ask this of you…"
"..."
"Yo, he writin' an essay out there."
"Why fight, knowing that your time will come?"
"... I think my reason is pretty much the same as yours, as is the philosophy of a martial artist."
"Do tell." Cell smiled as he crossed his arms and leaned against the gate.
"I use martial arts to find out where my limits lie and how I need to crush them. Completely obliterate them. If there's a wall, I will find a way through it, not around it. I… I want to be the best."
"Then you and I are the same that way."
"... I don't doubt that."
"Everyone's time is limited but… I saw the data. Most Earthlings don't live past 100 years of age. Life forms like turtles and trees are the only things that usually do. When I went back and checked the documents of my creation the statistics labelled my life expectancy as over 800."
"..." Tien wormed his jaw around at the revelation.
"Assuming that this information is correct, I will persist and pursue this career for at least eight times longer than you'll be able to. Are you still comfortable engaging in this line of… 'work' knowing that I'll eventually outclass you?"
"I don't do this for you, Cell."
"I wouldn't think so. But unlike your allies, I pay very close attention to Everything around me. I can tell you've aged a significant amount more since the tournament than Krillin or Goku have."
"..."
"..." Krillin raised a brow, shooting a cursory glance The Three Eyed Man's way.
"You've got quite a bit of time left, but it's certainly not 100 years, I don't even think it's 80."
"..."
"What?" Krillin let out. "What the hell is he talking about?"
"The Tri-Beam."
"..?"
"I've used it really recklessly. I didn't think Tao and Shen actually meant it when they said it saps your life until after I used it in the fight against the Saiyans. Up until that point I only used it twice my whole life but after the third that's when it started to hit a little bit. Then I used three against Frieza. After that is when the pain… started."
"And you didn't think… to tell us about this?"
"It's not your problem."
Krillin finally noticed just how many grey hairs stuck out in his now salt and pepper. It used to be black. Crows feet latched onto his eyes and old man veins started to crop up on his muscles naturally.
"Are you okay?"
"I've learned to live with the pain. That's just what you have to do anyway so I don't see the need to bother people with my problems."
"So I reiterate." Cell replied, waving his hand on the air dramatically. "You'll continue, even though I'll outpace you in the end?"
"..."
"Your goal is to be the strongest, correct? You simply can't do that because it's my goal and I'll live longer than you. Are you okay with only satiating that while alive?"
"..."
"Because you might win here, hell, you might win every match we'll ever have but I'll outclass you at some point. And you're content with that?"
"..."
"You're not like the others. You do this shit for yourself but the win count matters, doesn't it?"
"... I'm not gonna lie. It does."
"So. You'll continue?"
"Absolutely."
Cell smiled wide, presenting a handshake to his adversary across the basketball court.
"Good."
Clap.
They met in the middle and pulsating energies started to surge every which way, blasting winds kicking up against the gate and rattling it like no tomorrow.
"I've come to the realisation that people who have wavering convictions are the Actual ones who matter the least, Not weak individuals. I respect your commitment, Tienshinhan."
"I didn't come here to put on my thinking cap, Cell. Can we fight or what?"
"Gladly."
Fsht! Woosh!
"Oh shit they goin'!"
Chiaotzu
The Emperor ate with an attendance of many guards and a well encumbered woman sitting just to the right of him along the spacious table. He smiled, a gesture which was returned by her the very same. She wore a veil of some sort, hiding her face behind it. As the pair put on their royal bibs, a door opened and the litany of men with weapons around them rushed the breach immediately only to backstep as soon as they saw who.
"Tien! Whoa~ Krillin? What a surprise."
"Good to see you, Chiaotzu."
"How have you guys been?"
"We've been getting along."
Krillin kept his mouth shut, looking at the various decorative and elaborately crafted scrolls lining the palace walls.
"What are you doing here?"
"I… I haven't been around too often lately and I just ya know… thought I'd stop by. Just so happen to have Krillin with me so…"
"Tien doesn't show up because he's a bad friend, what's your excuse Krillin?"
"Heh~" Tien let out embarrassed, red cheeks as he rubbed the back of his chrome dome.
"If you don't remember, I work for law enforcement, Chiaotzu."
"No. It's been too long, nothing to remember. You never told me."
Krillin facepalmed.
"Yeah. It has been too long. Who are you eating with?"
"My wife, of course."
"YOUR WIFE!?"
"What? Mifan has to go on without me. What's gonna happen if I don't have an heir?"
"... Huh. Sorry. That's on me. I really should have been around more."
"Don't be foolish. I'll give you boys a hard time but I could have reached out myself. It's just as much on m-"
"Bullshit." Tien claimed as he pulled out a seat opposite Chiaotzu's special someone and plopped down onto it.
"Yeah." Krillin did the same, sitting next to Tien. "You have an entire island to run. You have other responsibilities to uphold rather than spend time training and hanging out."
"Nonsense. I may have responsibilities but it's not like I didn't have Some free time. I'm sorry we haven't spent as much time together as we should have."
"Gee." Krillin let out unintentionally as he blushed as well.
"Well." Tien remarked as he pressed his palms up against the edge of the table. "We're here now. So I want to extend an invitation."
"Invitation to what?"
"The Budokai."
"Ohhh."
"I'd really like it if you came to watch. This event is-"
"The last one. I heard. And yes, I'd love to come watch you perform, Tien. It's a shame I never got to see any of your other wins besides The 22nd."
"Pshaw. The 22nd was my only one that didn't count."
"Of course." Chiaotzu smiled. "Can't ever take a compliment can you?"
"Nope." Tien replied with a dastardly smirk, shifting back in his seat and crossing his legs.
"..."
"It's good to see you guys. Would you like to stay for dinner?"
As soon as The Emperor popped the question, said food arrived and the staff opened up the steel lids, revealing steaming and cooked to perfection mongolian cuisine.
"..."
Krillin and Tien's stomachs growled as if on cue.
"You mind waiting? I'd like to eat but if we're gonna have dinner I'm not about to leave my girl in the dust."
"Absolutely. We'll wait for you."
"Thanks, Chiaotzu."
Annin
"King Yemma?"
"What is it?" His buoyant voice bounced around the indigo coloured, sweat-laden cave.
In the confines of a sweltering cavern, a woman laid against the front of a gigantic cauldron. She wore an elegant but sturdy war dress, reds, whites, and oranges marked her frame as well as a peculiar headdress with antennae like appendages dangling in front of her face, her hair a shiny black. She inhaled sharply through her nose, the scents of titillating spice, with pinches of ectoplasmic aura and gazed up at the melting pot. Steam and smoke puffed up into the atmosphere.
"Why am I in charge of The Furnace?"
Her antennae twitched and vibrated in tune with the soundwaves. She put her hand on the stove and closed her eyes. The King pondered as he stamped and approved various papers.
"Below. Above. Below. Well… I don't know why you would ask such a question. You never seemed all that concerned up until now. Below."
"I guess I'm just a little frustrated that I've had two mishaps on the job now."
"Sure. Below. I guess I can understand that. Below. Do you think I'm going to fire you or something?"
"Well. I don't think it's an unreasonable assumption considering how important my job is. I can't afford to be screwing around."
"Below. I can see that."
"... I feel a little self conscious. That guy Goku could have beaten me all those years ago. It would have been a toss up but now… I can feel it. There's no way I can compete with a power like that."
"I think you're selling yourself short. Below. You just have to put more hours in."
"I guess you're right, King Yemma. The way I see it is~" She remarked, standing up and pacing backwards a bit to really feel out the grandiosity of the titanic kettle. "I'm supposed to be watching the gate, both inside, and out. Can't afford to be training all day and then be tired if I have to defend against it. I'm lucky Mutaito bailed me out all those years ago. Damn Spitfire got right through here and I didn't even know. Tsk." She kissed her lips, shaking her head and putting her hands on her hips in the process.
"Lord Annin." A demon appeared before her, pink skin, one regal horn, wavering black locks and cream coloured robes.
Fwoffff~
Pink flames peeled away from his frame as he took a respectful stance in her presence.
"What is it?"
The demon locked eyes with Annin, furrowing his brow and veering his eye contact off to the side.
"We have, visitors."
"... I see."
"Annin?"
"Yes, King Yemma?"
"There are millions and millions of people with jobs just like yours. Now I don't want to get Too existential on you, but the only thing that really matters is that the gate itself stays intact. Stragglers escaping to where they're not supposed to be isn't a big deal. Your job is the furnace, not the hooligans who want in or out. Have more faith in yourself."
"Thanks."
"Do you want me to attend to them, Lord Annin?"
"Yes. Please do."
"As you wish."
Fwofff~
And so Annin stood there, watching as the foggy pink mist ascended, meeting up with the smog at the top of the cave.
Pilaf
"So whatarewe going to do with him, Sire?"
"Shut up! I'm trying to think, Mai."
Mai and Shu shot a glance at each other, raising a brow.
"Sorry… Emperor."
The Blue Imp needled his temples with his small fingers in a decidedly gruff manner, trying desperately to pull something from the aether to answer this problem.
"Well why don't we just take this guy with us on the mission?"
"..."
"SHU ARE YOU CRAZY!?"
"Dah~" The Dog fell over himself as Pilaf screamed his head off.
"That might not be such a bad idea, Emperor."
"I can't believe you're on board with this."
"Well, he's pretty docile as long as he has those pudding cups."
"But they're Mine! Damnit! Not his! Get away from there!"
Bvyui! BOM!
Cell Jr. lobbed a ball of Ki his location while snacking on the leftover cup, blasting the back wall and opening it up to the desert sands of the evening.
"No! You ruthless monster!" Pilaf wailed as he slammed his fist on the tile.
"But ehh~ Sire?"
"What?"
"Weren't we gonna leave this place behind anyway?"
"..."
"Like wasn't the point that we don't really cea' what happens?"
"Ahemn! Exactly right, Shu." Pilaf remarked as he shot up to his feet and fluffed his robes a single time. "I don't care what… happens here." The Emperor relayed, eyeing the last of the stock being plucked from the refrigerator.
"Hey ehh~ Kid!" Shu shouted across the room.
"..?"
"You wanna come with us? You can have more pudding cups if you do." The Dog prefaced as he pulled the last bastion of reserves from his ninja gi.
"You took some out? Nice thinking." Mai chuckled as the two fist bumped.
Cell Jr. wiped its face of the goo and nodded its head yes at the assertion. Pilaf scoffed at the idea but soon enough the trio-turned-quartet stood in front of the maroon gates of an epic mountainscape. Outside the barred doors loomed skulls, pikes, and all manner of ghastly deterrents. Shu sniffed the perimeter, tossing aside a blanket only to reveal a pile of dusty skeletons.
"Gyah!" He yelped, leaping into Mai's arms.
"These things have been here a long time, huh?"
"I gotta bad feelin' about this place~ Sheesh!" He shivered, taking in the strange scents of the aetherium.
"This serves as our marker ladies and gentlemen!" Pilaf yelled with exuberance, snatching a skull from the pile and touting it as a grandiose item. "This is our last chance!" He roared, showing the skull to all the other members of his ragtag crew. "If we fail this one we'll end up just like them! And I am Not going out like that! Not before the name Emperor Pilaf is heard round the world and people assemble in prayer at the mere thought of my name!"
"Yes, Lord Emperor." Mai replied, letting Shu onto the ground, placing her arm over her chest and kneeling with respect.
"Yes, Sire."
"..."
Pilaf just about blew a gasket at Cell Jr's curiosity that lied everywhere but him. Shu placed his arm over the blue bug child and forced a kneel, soon enough, it took on the stance naturally.
"Finally. Now you're starting to learn the pecking order."
Fwofff~
Pilaf turned around like he were entertaining an audience, a fierce pirouette to stun and captivate. Shu, Mai, and then of course, Cell Jr. stood to attention and followed after their Emperor.
"Mai."
"Yes, Emperor."
"And you better be using the right ones!"
"I am, Emperor."
"Good!"
Clicc. Kshuuuu~
She unscrewed the middle portion of three pill-like devices and threw them down onto the cracked crags. Out of the cylindrical objects popped The Pilaf Machines. Shu hopped in the long legged one, Mai the big body, and Pilaf the stout egg bot. Pilaf's voice sounded over the intercom and he let em' have it.
"We're not supporting that little rat's capsules anymore! Got it!? We'll just buy all our stuff from Pod Corp instead."
"Yes, Sire"
"Yes, Emperor."
"Okay! We have to clear this wall! Did you remember to fuel them up, Mai!?"
"Yes, Emperor."
"Good. Hey! You! Kid!"
The blue bug child just walked up plainly to the egg bot and tapped on the glass.
"Yes, you. Open up that door. You're strong so it should be no problem. If we have to, we'll jump it, but I don't want to waste the gas, capisce!?"
"Uhh, Sire. I don't think he knows what capisce means."
"Punch the damn door down, pion! Move your butt!" Pilaf relayed as he kicked the blue bug child in the wings with his suction cup-like foot.
Cell Jr. furrowed its brow but pursued anyway, walking towards the door with a renewed anger. The blue bug child wound back its fist and blasted it.
BONKK!
"..."
A mystical force reverberated throughout the land and the door crept open at a snail's pace. As the giant walls receded, the smokey pink fog beyond the barricade seeped outwards. A thick layer of mist permeated the atmosphere and stained the glass of each member's Pilaf Machines.
"Shu! Mai! Use the wipers!"
"Yes, Sire."
Skwee~Weep~Skwee~Weep.
"Now let's get to work."
"Right."
"Affirmative."
Plonkk. Plonkk. Ploink.
The Pilaf Gang marched into the aether with confident strides, Cell Jr. not at their heels but instead surveying the mist-laden land through the skies. The wispy hot pink fog snapped and whipped around, as if alive. Ghoulish apparitions and faded faces fastened to the mist, a soupy and wet mixture stuck to the skin of Cell Jr. The blue bug child dove around the air trying to rid itself of the unbearable pressure of the beyond. A strange ethereal force tugged at its black bug wings. Haunting moans and painful gasps sputtered out and echoed around the open field of pink glass shards. The path was filled to the brim with uneven and broken terrain, sharp spikes, and murderous intent. The field continued to fog the glass of each Pilaf Machine, forcing the windshield wipers into overdrive.
The faces in the mist appeared more clearly now, some even came up and tapped on the glass before disappearing in the fog.
"G-gugh-gugh-Goi don't now about this, Sire~"
"Enough! If this is too m-muh-muh-much for you, Shu then you can kiss your stock in the p-p-p-p-ppp-P-Bucks share goodbye!"
"Oh no! Anything but dat, Sire!"
"Look alive, fellas. We've got company, and it doesn't look like a ghost to me."
Cell Jr. stood head and shoulders below a salmon pink deity. The three in The Pilaf Machines looked on as the blue bug child stared down what appeared to be some sort of guardian. On the pink spikes lining the winding path were skulls, apparel, weapons, armour, items, you name it. The demon was wearing priestly robes, adorned with jewels and gems, a thick horn sticking out of his forehead. His pink skin contrasted well with the khaki undershirt and parachute pants he wore. The Stranger in The Mist stood stark on the air and finished the look with a red vest that hung down to his legs, red boots to boot.
Fwoffff~
Pink fire matching the dangerous spears on the outside of the pathway sprouted to life in his hands, the sheer volume was impeccable and the mist around him lit ablaze as well, sending out a cacophony of noise and explosive damage all around.
SKOOOFFFFF~
The Pilaf Machines bared the brunt of the assault, forcing the trio to backpedal on the path only for Pilaf to almost spear himself on one of the hot pink glass needles.
"Phew~" The Emperor whistled out, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"..." The Stranger in The Mist said nothing, only staring intently down at the blue bug child.
Cell Jr. looked up disapprovingly, pouting its lips and sharpening its brow. The Stranger in The Mist pointed its sharp index nail at the blue bug child, a flickering pink flame following. After the call out, The Stranger in The Mist waved Cell Jr. in with a wagging of the finger.
The Pilaf Gang VS The Stranger in The Mist
Objective: Get to the Other World no matter what!
Wsht! vvvvVVvVVvvvVvVV!
Cell Jr's bug wings flapped wildly as it tried to get a better attacking angle through The Stranger in The Mist's open yet subtly tight guard. The blue bug child leaped back and forth along the path, edging The Pilaf Machines back one step at a time. Cell Jr. caught the edge of the path, a seemingly endless abyss of rotating fog below as loose rocks detached from the cliff face.
Fsht! WhappWhappWhup!
In a ferocious display, Cell Jr. broke out with a tornado roundhouse of three back to back lefts, each blocked by The Stranger in The Mist but nonetheless feeling the impact. After being forced along the air, the demonic creature tightened its stance, twirling in the air and delivering a searing lash of pink flames. The arcing fire snapped like a whip as Cell Jr. barely ducked and the impact came crashing into Shu's ostrich-like mech.
Whuassssss~
The window barely held on, a sickening black staining the glass.
"Dah~"
"Shu, you alright?"
"D'ill be okay."
"Idiots! We use this time to break through! This is the perfect diversion!"
"..!" The Stranger in The Mist immediately disappeared into nothing but pink fog only to materialise right in front of the small egg bot.
"Shu! Mai! Anywo-"
WHAMM!
An epic drive-by initiated by Cell Jr. launched The Stranger in The Mist right into the mist. The blue bug child backflipped off the air with all the grace of a dancer before the pink flames burst back into existence and several ghostly images bearing lanterns filed in to assist.
"They don't look so friendly either." Mai relayed over the comms as she took a couple calculated steps to assure her surroundings.
"Get back!" Shu yelled, the top node of his machine blasting out a roaring gout.
"Ahahahaaa~" One of the ghouls screeched, turning tail immediately at the sight of the fire.
Only a few phantoms stayed after The Dog's display of dominance. One of course was The Stranger in The Mist, looking to come over the top with an axe handle of legends.
Wsst! THLAMM!
The ground cracked under the weight of the blow as Cell Jr. childhandled the egg bot, moving it out of the demon's path of action.
"I'll teach you!" Pilaf shouted, clicking and clacking the buttons on his console and locking onto his target.
Shyuu~Khyuu~Fyuun~ Duh-DOOOONNN!
The Stranger in The Mist weaved the three missiles, all of the projectiles exploding with bombast behind the guardian. Pink fog and sharp crystals shattered all around under the pressure of the aftershock.
"You're not gonna like this one."
The Stranger in The Mist danced on the air, skating away from Mai's hammerfist.
DUNKK!
The ground shook once more, the glass pathway starting to break down.
"Duhhh~ Mai! We gotta be careful!"
"Right… I didn't see that." She replied, stepping away from the edge and watching as chunks fell off into the unending fog below.
"Get~ Off! ! That's the last straw! No one dodges Emperor Pilaf's missiles and gets away with it!"
Snapp!
The Stranger in The Mist snapped his fingers, a violent rocking of pink flame accompanying it and landing right on target.
Zzzzzz~Zyoinnnn!
"..? ..!"
"Ha-HA! Like that!? I installed a new feature, numbskull! Energy shields in MY Pilaf Machines!"
The Stranger in The Mist parried the nimble efforts of the blue bug child before catching a flying fist to the face, thrusting him into the cracked pavement of the glassy pathway.
"Emperor coming through!" Pilaf yelled at the top of his lungs as he punched in various commands on the keys and folded all his limbs inward, turning the egg bot into a tight sphere.
DWANN-DWANN-DWANN!
The orb bounced up and down, crashing into everything like a wrecking ball, barreling down onto The Stranger in The Mist's location. He braced himself for impact, waiting until the last moment and petering out into fog just before the hit.
SLAMM!
"Careful, Sire!"
"I'll be careful when he's dead! You buffoons chase off the rest of these hooligans!" Pilaf commanded, bouncing up and down, granting no reprieve for the enemy.
"Yes, Lord Emperor." Mai replied as she swatted at, and casted away the faces in the mist, moans accompanying their departure.
Cell Jr. furrowed its brow, squatting low and putting its index on its lip.
"Grrrrr! Why do you insist on running away!? You're only delaying the inevitable!"
Fwofffff!
"HAH! You're desperate! Resorting to moves that don't work!"
A boast, as per usual of The Emperor without a throne. Each use of the Energy Shield was sapping from the reserves of his Pilaf Machine.
Pilaf continued to smash and cause general disarray along the path, breaking down what little ground they had to walk on until the stone finally gave way and their line back to the gate was lost. The Stranger in The Mist smiled at the revelation, skating back on the wind and avoiding another plummet from the egg bot.
"Get back here!"
Before Pilaf could leave the ground, Cell Jr. sniped the angle and booted the back of The Pilaf Machine with a furious left leg, sending it much faster than The Stranger in The Mist had anticipated.
WHUMPP! SMACKK!
"Uoffgh!" The demon coughed out, spread eagle over the glass as the egg bot crashed into the centre of his frame.
Cell Jr. looked about the battlefield, watching as Shu and Mai shooed off the rest of the faces in the shroud.
"Was that the last of them?"
"Duhhh~ I think so."
"Where's the Emperor?"
"I think he's up thea'." The Dog pointed his machine's tubular appendage to the sky.
"Take this!" Pilaf roared as he punched in a number of commands into the keys, automatic weaponry filing out of the machine in time to blast into the demon.
Ratatatatatatatatatatata~Fwofffle~
In an instant, the man's body turned into smokey pink mist, evading any semblance of firepower and reappearing at his flank.
"Huh!?"
WHAMM!
With another epic snipe, Cell Jr. sent The Stranger in The Mist careening into the cracked runway, forcing another hole into the structure as he parted the mist and the faces within them. Pilaf and the blue bug child touched down on the path, the pink glass beneath them crunching under their weight.
"Hmph! You did alright, new kid. But don't expect any pay raises yet o-"
Cell Jr. pushed the egg bot right off the edge.
"Dah!"
"Emperor!"
"Worry not, I've still got plenty of juice left in the tank! But you! You're on thin ice, you hear me!?'
"Blah blah blah." Cell Jr. remarked, covering its yellow ear flaps and making silly faces.
"What a pest!"
"Heh-Heh-Heh."
"No laughing!"
"-OF Course! Would never dream of it, Sire!"
The four of them marched the beat up crystalline road, cracks and fissures abound along the way. The fog continued to bemoan the existence of them, shifting and groaning in response to each heavy step they incurred, minus Cell Jr's little tip taps. Soon enough, the four came across a cavernous system, emanating out of it was a stark white mist, punching out and pushing away the pink fog until the two opposing forces naturally fused farther out into the jagged pathway. The wind hit just right on Cell Jr's face that it decided to go first.
"Yeahhhh~ You go first. Check for traps, heheheheh."
Cell Jr. gazed around at the beat up walls and steaming rocks until it came across an archway, past that was a figure in white and red, two distinct orange antennae.
"Hmm." She mused, brushing off something from her armour. "Hello."
Cell Jr. waved back plainly, much to the comfort of Annin. She let out a few giggles in response.
"What are you doing here, little guy?"
Cell Jr. shrugged.
"I see your posse is on their way."
The blue bug child shot a glance back at them, watching as they strided into the cavern.
"This the place!?"
"What place?"
"The portal to another world! Don't you dare play games with me!"
"I don't see any portals."
"Lies! I know that the ehh~"
"Cauldron, Lord Emperor."
"-CAUldron is a portal!"
"Ohhh~ you mean This portal to another world. See I got a little confused."
"Rrrrrrrgh! Shu! Mai! Teach her a lesson!"
"Right!"
The Pilaf Gang VS Annin of The Furnace of Eight Divisions
Objective: Establish a new world order!
Shu stampeded across the rock, looking to boot her in the head with a ferocious soccer kick from his machine only to be denied utterly and tossed to the wayside, sending him reeling across the rock and pushing up stones.
"Hey, look."
"I'm not gonna hear any lip, sister! We're getting through here!"
"Yeah, I understan-"
"I don't think you do." Pilaf interjected, smashing his fist on the console and shooting out a litany of missiles.
"I'm trying to ta-"
"Let me do the talking and You do the listening!? How bout that!?"
Annin dodged the various projectiles, causing them to careen and explode off the walls, raining down damp debris onto the five of them. Cell Jr. stood there and watched as The Pilaf Gang ran roughshod around the antennae'd woman.
"If you had even an Ounce of sense, you'd know lady that resistance is-"
"AYY!" The woman screeched, planting her foot on the front orb of Pilaf's machine, forcing the glass into a network of spiderweb fractures.
WHONKK!
"... What?"
"Jeez. Listen to me for like two seconds."
"Ahemn! Shu, Mai, stand down."
"... Really?"
"As you wish, Emperor."
"Now since you so wisely decided the diplomatic path, I'll take it easy on you. Now what was your offer?"
"Just walk through."
"..."
"..."
"... Excuse me, what?"
"Go. Hop into the cauldron."
"No! You're trying to pull a fast one on me!"
Dwernn! Skfffffff!
"I know your tricks! That's the kind of scheme I'd pull!"
"You can choose to believe me or not, but the temperature of the furnace is what holds the gateway together but the cauldron itself is the actual link. The only way you'd get to travel to Other World is through here. This and… there's one other woman on this planet that can help living entities get across."
"Who is she then!?"
"I'm not gonna rat my girl out. You crazy?"
"You're not lying?"
"Nope."
"... Shu!"
"Ehh~ Yes, Sire?"
"Hop through that cauldron!"
"What!?"
"You heard me!"
"Pardon."
"What is it, now!?"
"You four aren't just going to be able to come back."
"Excuse me! You ARE trying to kill us!"
"No. It's that the world on the other side has a bunch of checks and balances. You don't just get to come back through the furnace whenever you want."
"It's okay, Sire. I am willing to die for this empire."
Dwern.
The Dog hopped out the robot and stared into the blistering heat below.
"Gulp~ Screw it, geronimooooooooooe~"
FWOFFFFFF!
"Shu!"
"..." Annin gazed back up at the white fog lining the walls. "King Yemma decides where you go. You three better hurry if you want to actually stay together."
"What should we do, Emperor?"
"... Gah! Fine! We'll follow through! I'm not letting my plans go to waste!"
Dwern.
"You haven't heard the last of Emperor Pilaf! Believe that!"
FOFFFFFFFFF! Dwern.
"Uhh. It was nice meeting you, Miss." Mai nodded, one leg over the threshold, like she were riding a horse. She saluted and:
SKWOFFFFFFFFFFF!
"Aren't you going to follow your friends?"
"..."
Cell Jr. just shrugged again.
"Doesn't make a difference to me."
Fwoffff~
"My deepest apologies, Lord Annin." The Stranger in The Mist remarked with bated breath, and a sigh.
"Nah, don't worry your pretty little head over it. I just let em' through."
"You what!?" He shouted back, standing full attention.
"You heard King Yemma, didn't you? If I caused a commotion with This little guy running around the furnace might as well have gone boots up." Annin relayed as she rubbed the top of Cell Jr's black dome like a child. "You're lucky he was holding back."
"... He was?"
Cell Jr. shrugged once more.
"Whoever this is has some potential. I can tell you that. Didn't feel like fighting this one with the furnace at stake."
"So what now?"
"Well Yemma gets the last say anyway. They're living so at least I know he can't throw them in The Soul Cleanser."
"..."
"Are you not going with them?"
"..."
Cell Jr. walked out of the establishment, pulling a laugh deep from the chest of Annin.
"O~kayy." She let out, blinking a few times from the confusion.
King Yemma
"Now this is just bullshit. What the devil are These guys doing in the tunnel? Below."
"I don't know, King Yemma." A blue demon lady with a goat horn sticking out of the top of her head replied, a suitcase at her side and a notebook clung to her chest. "But you gotta decide where they go or otherwise they're just gonna-"
"Fine, fine, just give me a second. Below."
"I'm afraid you don't have too much longer before they atomise."
"I know that. Above. You all are going to have to wait a second."
"Come on! I paid good money for this!"
"They ripped me off, I was supposed to get 72 baddies and all I got is no more back pain! God is great, deez nuts! I don't want to sit in line and wait for all these weirdos to get sent to the shadow realm! Where my honeys at!?"
The door to the left at the entrance of The Check-in Station.
Da-Dumn.
Finally opened.
Skfuuuuuuupoppopph. Whonmpp!
The great beyond was laid bare for all to see for approximately less than a second. The pull of the blitzing galaxy tugged on each white apparition before King Yemma promptly shut the titanic double doors behind him.
"What the hell was that!?"
FYUUUUUU~SKWERKLEE~ZWAAAAAANNNN~
The shifting cosmos pulled apart and arced around the tube at light speed, pulling the shape of the three misfits out of alignment. Their voices echoed, bouncing around the funnel-like space.
"You're~ looking a bit undwerre the weathwerre, Lord Emperor~"
"You're not so stunning yourself! Mai~eiYai!"
"What are you three hooligans doing here?"
"Dah! Who's da~eaughh~eaaah~Aet?"
"I don~ knowouw!"
"You three are interrupting a particularly busy day. What's your excuse?" The giant red ogre grumbled, taking off his cap, flapping it in the aether, fixing his hair, and then placing it back atop his head.
"I'm going to ta-ta-eaake overwerrre~ Earrr~ this world! And there's nothing you can do to stop me!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
"I'll send you to Lord Beerus and we'll see if you can conquer that planet. If you can then shoot, I guess you earned it."
SNAPP!
At the behest of King Yemma's fingertips, the trio launched into the atmosphere, past the stars, past the orbs, past everything. They shot into the beyond and disappeared, twinkling like a shifting constellation before they were finally snuffed out. The red giant filed out of the galactical hallway, reappearing in front of the masses, making sure to close the door quick.
Da-Dumn!
"Ahemn-Hmm."
"One last thing, you have a meeting with Supreme at the turn of the Age, King Yemma."
Each turn of the Age is referring to 100 years, which would result in Age 800 being the designated time.
The ogre nodded his enormous head and continued to stamp the papers at a breakneck pace.
"Hope those three had something to eat before they came here. It's gonna be a while. Below. Above. Below."