Chapter Forty-Three: Soldiers
"It's time to strap our boots on
This is a perfect day to die
Wipe the blood out of our eyes
In this life there's no surrender
There's nothing left for us to do
Find the strength to see this through…"
Soldiers - Otherwise
DBZ
Finally…!
No…not again, no! Falmer thought desperately as the chaos sank in.
Some action…It's been too long…The raspy voice rose out of the darkness encroaching on Falmer's chaotic mind. His vision swirled, the flames of destruction blurring in and out of focus sending his stomach into nauseating somersaults. He was aware that Frieza was saying something, but the raspy voice of the Beast was now laughing in his head. He couldn't block it out, its volume rising to drown out everything else.
Let it go, Falmer. You need me if you want to survive.
"I need you…" he whispered breathlessly as he covered his face with both hands, fighting against the inevitable possession. He peered through his fingers as muscles all over his broken body began to convulse, his trembling gaze locking on the Ice-jin tyrant framed before him between plumes of rising smoke.
I cannot beat Frieza…
No, but I can.
His power is overwhelming, though. I-
It's happening whether you want it to or not. May as well accept it and move on. No sense in making it hard on yourself. Frieza raised his arm, his index finger pointing at Falmer as it began to pulsate with a purple radiance.
I…I cannot do this. I am not a warrior.
Today…you become one. Frieza fired his attack.
Darkness fell.
DBZ
Earlier…
Mejai eyed the gathered warriors quietly as they all checked their gear and armor in silence. Emotions were high, the atmosphere tense but reserved. He glanced around at the massive console before him and touched his hand to the bare panel. An image of the blue and green planet that was Earth appeared and he focused his thoughts on moving the ship towards the atmosphere. His sensors detected no other ships in orbit.
"Hm. Frieza seems to be on planet already." Heads turned his way and he received many cold looks for pointing out the obvious, but no one uttered a word. He couldn't really blame them to be honest. They'd all come a long way in the past few months, but they knew as well as he that the massive power they felt on Earth was far greater than any of theirs.
"I'm taking the ship down. The descent may be jarring." It wouldn't be. The ship was too well designed. But he had to say something to fill the air. No one had spoken a word in more than an hour.
"Can you hide the ship in the clouds?" Seluri asked, someone else finally breaking ice.
Mejai observed her curiously but nodded once. "The propulsion system has an anti-gravity generator."
She nodded absently and looked around at the others. "Should we not conceal our approach?"
Amotto nodded. "I think we should try to maintain the element of surprise. It can only help us if we catch Frieza off guard."
"Yeah," Bardock dipped his head in agreement. "Take what we can 'specially since these damn nanites don't seem to be workin'," he said with a growl of annoyance. "Useless-ass machines," he grumbled.
Seripa shook her head. "They worked fine for me on Jynn-jin 13. I don't understand why they ain't now." She eyed her hands as if he they'd give her the answer as to why the nanites had not helped to boost their power. They'd all been severely injured and had been placed into rejuvenation tanks. Upon their recovery it'd been discovered that while they all, Zether and Falmer included, had grown in power the increase had not been as significant as they'd all anticipated. Berik had been at a loss and had retired to his laboratory to try and isolate the cause. As of yet they had not heard anything from the Jynn-jin scientist.
Zether shrugged. "At least you lot have time to figure it out before jumping into the fray. Me, Seluri, and Falmer don't have the luxury of time." He smirked as several grimaces were given his way. "Oh don't think I'm sour about that. I'm gonna enjoy every second of this," he said with a laugh.
Falmer gave his brother a pained expression. "Of course you are. Can you at least stay focused, though?"
"Oh, I am," he said as he gave the rim of his glove a snap. "200% focused, bro. I'm ready to give Frieza a good old fashioned Zether-ass kicking."
Mejai couldn't help but to grin as he eased the starship down into the atmosphere, his thoughts transmitting quickly and concisely to the computer. The descent was steady and smooth, the anti-gravity generators kicking in and throttling up slowly to counter the starship's incredible weight. Zether was definitely one of the most arrogant beings he'd ever met, but it was hard not to like the man. He had a certain charm about him.
Bardock smirked and his ever-intense eyes narrowed as he regarded the younger warrior. The tension in the room seemed to be evaporating before Mejai's eyes. All save for Seluri, but that really was nothing new.
"I hope it's better than the one ya tried to give me," Bardock said, banging his fist on his green and black chest plate for added emphasis.
Zether scowled and waved his hand dismissively. "You can't count that! That wasn't a real fight."
"You're right, it wasn't," Bardock agreed with a bark of laughter.
Amotto sighed. "Enough. Both of you. We can't afford for the two of you to act like idiots right now."
Zether smirked. "She's right, you know. But when this is all over, you and me are settling this score. Super Saiyan against my Kin Slayer form. Whaddya say?"
Bardock chuckled. "Whatever you say."
Mejai grinned at the exchange, but refrained from laughing. The time did not seem right for laughter. Spirits were higher than he'd anticipated, though he could still feel the tension. It was as if they were awaiting a coming storm and had resolved themselves to their fate. He hoped his confidence in them wasn't misplaced, despite feeling as though it weren't. They were all exceptional warriors, Seluri included. He'd watched them all train at various points during the trip and had deemed them more than capable warriors.
Though he had to say he was especially interested in the Gylderians, Zether especially. For all their external differences they weren't much different than the Saiyans when it came down to it. But there was something there he couldn't quite figure out about them. The Gylderians' radical transformations were like nothing he'd seen in millennia. They fascinated him.
He dropped the ship through a massive cloudbank, a wall of white concealing his view. He shifted his thoughts and the ship leveled off as the anti-gravity generators were throttled higher. He shifted the propulsion around and maneuvered the ship through the clouds in the direction of Frieza's fearsome power, all while maintaining supersonic speeds. He figured they'd reach Frieza's location within the hour at this speed.
The ship broke through the cloudbank and immediately careened into a massive floating platform with a thunderous crash that rocked the ship to a violent jarring halt and threw the unsuspecting group from their feet and into Mejai as a jumble of flailing limbs. The whole of the ship rumbled from the strike, its hull groaning under the stress as it shifted against whatever they'd struck. Mejai disentangled himself from the others, several protests made as he shoved against different people to climb back to his feet. He quickly slammed his hand against the console to reestablish the psychic-link.
"What the hell was that?" Bardock demanded as he gathered himself to his feet, his stern gaze glaring at Mejai accusingly.
"I'm not sure," he responded absently, his brow furrowed in concentration. The computer seemed to have been knocked offline. It was disconcerting, but he knew it would reboot shortly. So long as the anti-gravity generators weren't knocked offline—all things considered they seemed to still be functional—then they needed only to wait for the system to reboot.
"We hit something," Amotto said as she moved to Mejai's side, her eyes on the blank screen of the console.
"No shit," supplied Zether with a scowl. "The question is what was it?"
"It was solid," the ancient Saiyan said with a small frown as he looked at the screen as well. "The computer is down for now."
"We are not falling," Seluri pointed out.
"The anti-gravity generators operate on an independent system, and it seems to be unaffected." He glanced around at the others and grinned. "Anyone care to join me in assessing the damage?"
"You, who have come to this planet that I watch over, state your business."
Heads turned about in confusion, everyone looking for the source of the sudden voice.
"Was that…in my head?" Falmer asked in wonder, glancing at Mejai questioningly.
"It was in all our heads," Seluri replied and everyone else glanced at him, too.
"It was a telepathic message."
Mejai's gaze hardened in focus. "Greetings, Kami of Earth I assume?" he replied so that everyone could hear. "We're not here for a fight. Eh, well not with Earth, anyway."
"You rammed your ship into my Sanctuary," the disembodied voice replied with a measure of heat to his tone.
"Yeah, sorry about that one. Your Sanctuary didn't register on my radar so I never had time to avoid a collision." He was aware of the others watching him in silence, but he largely ignored them as he pushed his senses out to gauge the Guardian of Earth. The being was concealing his presence, but Mejai had a feeling he was closer than he let on.
"What do you intend to do to my people?" the Kami of Earth demanded.
"Nothing, except maybe save them from Frieza."
The voice was silent for a few moments in wake of that declaration. "Before you Off-Worlders began appearing I never would have imagined a power such as this Frieza's. It's not a power I can hope to challenge. Are you here to help us?" he asked, his psychic voice tentatively hopeful.
Mejai grinned and glanced at the others before looking at Amotto. "Well, are we?"
She grimaced but sighed. "Can you make it so I can talk to him?"
He nodded and his grin broadened. "Go ahead."
"Wait, what do I call him?" she asked, frowning in confusion. "Does he have a name?"
"Just call him Kami."
"Right." She took a breath and exhaled. "Kami of Earth, my name is Amotto. I am the Arch-Cleric of Super Saiyans of the Planet Ve…uh…" she glanced quickly at Seluri.
"Saintya," she supplied helpfully.
"Of Planet Saintya, excuse me," Amotto finished hurriedly.
"I have never heard of Super Saiyans or Planet Saintya," the Kami of Earth replied. "So what is any of that supposed to mean to me?"
Amotto grimaced again and glanced hopefully at the others, but no one responded. "Damn it," she muttered as she narrowed her eyes. "I suppose that was unnecessary. Either way, I am the Arch-Cleric of Super Saiyans and I am the unofficial leader of this band of warriors. I'll be honest with you, Kami of Earth, we did not come to Earth to save your planet. But," she continued before he could respond, "we are here to kill Frieza, and we harbor no ill will towards you or your people. When we are done with Frieza, we will leave Earth in peace."
"I can feel Frieza's power. Will there even be an Earth for you to leave?"
"I don't have an answer to that question, I'm sorry." She sighed and shook her head ruefully. "The powers that will be at play here are tremendous and our goal is to kill Frieza. There will be destruction in the wake of this battle, I can guarantee that. Many people will probably die today, and though I loathe killing I have to acknowledge that some sacrifices are inevitably necessary. Frieza must die. He's a threat not just to your planet, but to the entire galaxy. The universe, even. His reign of terror has to end here on Earth."
The Kami of Earth was silent for a long time. Amotto glanced at Mejai curiously, but he just gave her a grin and shrugged. She frowned. "Kami of Earth?"
"I will meet with you," he replied immediately.
Before Amotto could reply a golden pillar of light materialized in the middle of their group and almost instantly vanished to reveal a wrinkled green alien. He was wearing flowing white robes and a blue cloak, a circular red symbol emblazoned across his front. He had a large bald and wrinkled head, large pointed ears, two antenna sprouting from his wizened forehead, and faded yellow spots on his shoulders, biceps, and forearms. In his right hand he held a large wooden staff, even seeming to somewhat lean on it for support.
Stern onyx eyes looked slowly around at each of them.
"Whoa!" Mejai declared, making the being jerk his attention sharply to the green-haired man. "You're a Namekian!" He laughed. "Wow! You're a long way from home!"
The being, obviously the Kami of Earth, widened his eyes in astonishment. "A Namekian?" he repeated, his gaze falling to the floor as he frowned thoughtfully. "Namekian," he said again, but slowly as if he were sampling the name. "Namekian…Yes, it feels right," he muttered quietly. "I am a Namekian." He looked back up and at Mejai. "I have lived my entire life here on Earth, but I have known that this was not my original home. I knew not where I had come from, so I thank you. At another time I must learn more of my kind from you, if you are able to teach me."
Mejai grinned. "I know a little, but I haven't seen one of your kind in thousands of years. Wait!' His eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. If there was a Namekian on Earth, then…"Do you have any Wish Orbs here?"
The Kami of Earth blinked in surprise. "Wish Orbs? You mean the Dragonballs? Is that why you are here then?" he asked cautiously, his grip seeming to tighten on his staff.
"What the hell's a Dragonball?" Bardock demanded with a frown.
The Kami of Earth looked back at him with an arch of his wrinkled brow. "I suppose I will take that as a 'no.'"
Mejai laughed. "We didn't even know there were Wish Orbs on Earth, but this is great! I've seen those things in action and they can undo any damage that we do here today. Like a magical Reset Button!"
The Kami of Earth looked at him curiously. "You have seen Dragonballs before? Where?"
"On your home planet, many thousands of years ago."
Seripa frowned and looked between the two of them. "Wish Orbs, Dragonballs, whatever they are, what the hell are you talking about? How can these things undo the coming damage?"
Kami looked at her silently, clearly considering whether or not to respond.
But he didn't have to, because Mejai had no problem with it. "Wish Orbs, or Dragonballs, are magical artifacts created by the Namekians that are capable of calling forth a gigantic Dragon-god that will then grant you three wishes."
"Bull shit," Zether responded as he folded his arms across his chest. "If things like that existed the whole universe would be at war for them."
"Shenlong can only grant a single wish, actually," the Kami of Earth said quietly.
Mejai quirked a brow and looked at the old Namekian curiously. "Really? Your Dragon's name is Shenlong?" he asked in clear astonishment. Could it be the Shenlong?
The Kami of Earth eyed Mejai in suspicion but nodded slowly. "Yes, that is correct."
"Oh my…" he laughed and shook his head. "That is incredible. After all these years it's Shenlong of all the Dragons in existence!"
"You have heard this name before, Stranger?"
Mejai grinned wider as the others looked at him curiously. "Let's just say Shenlong and I are old friends. And my name is Mejai." He gestured to Amotto at his side and introduced her, before then doing the same with the others.
The Kami of Earth looked around at each of them in turn, dipping his head in greeting. When Mejai finished he redirected his attention to Amotto. "I am known simply as the Kami of Earth, but you may address me as simply Kami. As much as I enjoy these pleasantries, I am afraid we must address the matter at hand." He paused and looked around curiously. "As well as removing your ship from my Sanctuary. You really did cause quite a significant amount of damage."
Mejai half-grimaced and half-grinned as he looked back at his console just as the screen began to glow. "I'll get right on that. The system is rebooting now." He touched both hands to the console and focused his thoughts towards restarting the engines.
Kami watched him for a moment before looking expectantly to Amotto. "What are your plans here today, Arch-Cleric Amotto?"
She hesitated as she looked around at the others. Mejai felt her eyes on him last of all, though he never looked her way. He'd learned long ago to predict the majority of her actions, as well as the actions of most of the others.
"Well," she started slowly, her eyebrows knitting together as she looked back to Kami. "The only thing we have planned is fighting Frieza."
"So you mean to say you do not plan on defeating him?" Kami queried.
"We do plan on defeating him. Well," she paused and sighed. "That's our hope, anyhow. Each of us is incredibly powerful, but Frieza's family is even more ridiculously powered. We want to try to wear him down by going in in two waves, saving our big guns," she gestured between herself and Bardock, who folded his arms and seemed to stand straighter when Kami glanced at him, "for last."
Kami frowned and returned his gaze to her. "I must have missed something. You two are not the most powerful individuals here. How are you the 'big guns,' as you put it?"
Bardock scowled in agitation, which brought a grin to Mejai's face. "That's 'cause me and her are Super Saiyans, old ma-oof!" his lungs emptied harshly as Seripa drove her elbow into his side. He cast her a sharp glare, which she responded to in kind.
"Shut up, Bardock," she said simply before turning to Kami. "Please excuse him. He's an asshole."
Kami blinked as Zether and Mejai laughed aloud, Bardock looking pointedly away sourly. "I-I see," he replied quietly. He cleared his throat after a moment and looked to Amotto once more. "What precisely is a Super Saiyan?"
She was silent for a moment, frowning as she thought of how to explain it. "It's a transformation ability our race possesses. It multiples our current power exponentially, giving us access to an incredible well of ki."
"I see." He nodded sagely. "So that is what happened to your kinsman against those invaders in Orange Star City."
Bardock's gaze snapped around and several voices exclaimed, "What?!"
Kami gave a start and looked around at them all. "Excuse me?"
"Are you talking about Turles?" Seripa demanded suddenly.
Kami regarded her with a frown. "I do not know his name, but he bore a strong resemblance to Bardock here." The man in question frowned.
"That was my brother, Turles. So that's how he beat the Ginyus…" He fell silent, lifting a hand to his chin thoughtfully.
Mejai turned his head as he made a few final adjustments to the now-running engines. "I'm going to remove the ship from your Sanctuary now. The movement may be jarring."
Kami looked at him and nodded, before turning back to Amotto. "Will that transformation be enough, though? I felt the boy's power during that battle, and while his strength increase was monumental…it was nowhere near to what I feel from Frieza."
Mejai paused in moving the ship and arched an eyebrow. "Really? Strange. The boy must've only ascended to Gigi." He shrugged and returned his focus to the console as he heard Kami ask what that meant. He directed his thoughts to the propulsion and the ship shuddered as it reversed away from the Sanctuary. The cameras came online seconds later and the console lit up as the floating circular Sanctuary came into view. Or at least the side of it, which had been caved in and demolished in the collision. Odd-looking fronds from uprooted trees hung into view, barely clinging to splintered trunks from above where they'd collided with the floating platform.
Kami frowned as Amotto grimaced. "We are so sorry about that," she said sincerely. "I swear it was an accident."
"It's my fault, actually," Mejai admitted with a glance given to him. "I should have been more careful. Most Kami's reside on these Heavenly Temples, after all. Mine was never stationary, though."
Kami's eyes widened in surprise as he looked at Mejai. It was a wonder he hadn't gotten whiplash yet. "Yours? You are a Kami?"
"I was, centuries ago." Mejai chuckled. "Not so much these days. Can't be Kami of a planet that no longer exists, after all."
Kami took on an empathic look. "I am sorry to hear that."
Mejai waved a hand dismissively. "It's in the past. But if means anything, Frieza's race, the Ice-jins, are the ones responsible."
Amotto nodded. "Yes. Which is why we MUST stop him here. Before he can destroy any more planets. Any more civilizations," she added firmly. "That's our mission, Kami."
The old Namekian eyed her warily and said, "Are you sure this is not a mission of vengeance?"
"We never said it wasn't," Seripa said, her steely tone belying her intent. Kami gave her a scrutinizing look and she continued, "Yeah, we've got our personal reasons for wantin' the lizard dead. But that don't change the fact that we ain't just doin' this for ourselves. We ain't here to avenge just our race, but all the races he's destroyed throughout the universe."
"Yeah," agreed Bardock. "And if it's more proof you want, Frieza enslaves and corrupts. We Saiyans are testament to that." He jerked his head to indicate Seripa. "Me and her used to work for him, and we did some really bad things for him. He turned us and countless others into killing machines, and sent us to wipe out planets so that he could control and then sell them."
Mejai looked at Bardock as the man paused, his face twisting up into a pained scowl of what was clearly self-loathing.
"We did things we ain't proud of, and we don't ever expect forgiveness." He lifted his dark gaze to give Kami a fierce stare. "All we're tryin' to do is make sure Frieza can't do this to anyone else."
Kami was silent as he regarded Bardock, his expression unreadable; though he did seem to be considering all that had been said. After a time he looked to Mejai and he turned to face the old Namekian, his usual mirth replaced with appropriate solemnity.
Kami's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly as he met the Ancient Saiyan's midnight gaze; he could almost feel the Namekian peering into his soul. I see your pain, Mejai. The thought was private, directed only to the former Kami.
If our mission is successful, no one else needs to bear this pain he replied. Aloud, he said, "So what do you say?"
Kami gave a soft smile before letting out a resigned sigh. "My choices are death or even more death. I suppose I really have no choice, do I?" It was clearly rhetorical.
Mejai grinned, his characteristic mirth back in full swing. "Not really."
The old Namekian nodded and looked back to Amotto. "So what precisely is your plan?"
DBZ
Frieza's nose twitched irritably and his cold gaze shifted from the delicately-held quad-starred Dragonball in his grasp to the lavender-haired human scientist locally-known as Dr. Briefs. Or, more specifically, to the smoldering yellow and white cylinder sticking out of his mouth from beneath the bushy white-streaked lavender facial growth that seemed to infect all aliens of this type. His brow creased and his nose wrinkled in distaste at the lingering haze and the unpleasant smell emitted by the offensive cylinder, and he couldn't help but to wonder how Dr. Briefs seemed so casually unperturbed by the thing. It permeated the enclosed laboratory, filtering into the air vents and spreading to the rest of the ship.
Though the cylinder, which the human had referred to as a "cigarette," offended Frieza to no end, he allowed the scientist the continued annoyance only due to the progress he had made on providing useful information regarding the Dragonballs. He'd sufficiently proven to Frieza that the Dragonballs indeed possessed a powerful abnormal energy to them that seemed capable of warping the very fabric of reality.
Not to mention the scientist had promised a device designed to locate the sources of such energy, allowing for an expedited retrieval of these supposed "mystical" artifacts. Frieza could suffer a million humiliations for access to such power. Even if they proved incapable of granting him a promised wish, he could still utilize the seemingly infinite power they contained. Perhaps he could build some sort of weapon…
"Ah, yes, I see…" mumbled Dr. Briefs distractedly.
"You see what, precisely?" Frieza queried as his gaze was drawn back to the Dragonball in his hand.
"Oh." Dr. Briefs looked at Frieza as if he'd forgotten he was there, which was very likely. The human was frustratingly absent-minded at times. "Well, since you ask, it seems I've isolated a particular human gene."
"What does that have to do with my Dragonballs?" Frieza demanded, his gaze snapping to the human again.
"Absolutely nothing, actually. I seem to have learned all there is to learn about the Dragonballs. At least until the rest of them are gathered up anyway. Which reminds me…My daughter should be about finished with her device." He looked around the room curiously. "Huh, that's funny. Where's she gotten to?"
"What device? You mean the one to locate these things?"
"Yes. Actually the device was her idea, so I figured I'd let her build it herself." He smiled fondly. "She's really very bright."
Frieza frowned and turned to face the scientist fully. "You think that a wise move, human? To test my patience so?"
Dr. Briefs blinked. "Test your patience? Why, I mean no offense. My daughter's intelligence rivals my own, perhaps even surpasses it! She can handle anything I can and she's only five!" He chuckled and looked towards the open doorway as a faint tip-tipping sound became audible.
"You better be right, human. I will accept no delays in attaining that which I desire, make no mistake about that."
"I am confident in Bulma's abilities, Lord Frieza."
"Is that so? If what you say is true then I may reward her intelligence accordingly. Nurture the youth, I say," Frieza purred with a wicked grin.
The absent-minded professor was blissfully ignorant, his attention still on the doorway. A few seconds later a little girl skipped through the open doorway a small circular object held aloft. Her powder-blue hair was tied pack into a ponytail, but several thick locks had come loose and these, along with her ponytail, bounced in rhythmic time to her steps.
She skipped to a stop in front of her father, standing up straight as she flashed a cheery smile to him. "Ta-da! One working Dragonball Finder!" She reached into a brown pouch at her waist and produced a shimmering 2-starred Dragonball. "I even tested it, Daddy! I had one of the weird guys hide it from me and I found it in no time!"
"Splendid-wait. What weird guy?" Dr. Briefs asked curiously.
"One of the weird guys in those funny suits." She pointed at Frieza. "You know, the guys that came with him!"
Frieza blinked at the girl curiously and looked at the circular device in her hand.
"Oh, the alien soldiers!" Dr. Briefs chuckled. "So how long have you been finished then?"
"A while. I played some before testing it." Bulma laughed as her father took the device and looked it over.
"My, my. I am impressed! So how does it work?" he asked as he clicked a dome-shaped button on the top and the blank screen lit up green with a yellow cross-hatched grid. Almost immediately two lights blinked almost on top one another, while five more blinked at different edges of the circular screen.
Bulma giggled. "Just like that!"
Dr. Briefs blinked in astonishment. "Wow! This…this is brilliant! So simple and yet so effective!" He laughed aloud. "You never cease to impress my dear girl!" He knelt down and she jumped into his arms with a cheerful chirp of laughter.
Frieza gazed upon the adulations in silence, the tip of his tail twitching back and forth impatiently.
"Oh! Daddy, daddy! Put me down!" Bulma protested as her father rose up with her in his arms. He laughed and relented, setting her back down. Almost immediately she reached into the pouch that had held the Dragonball and produced a tiny yellow flower that was mostly crumpled from its cramp confines. She grimaced at it and tried to smooth the petals and the stem out.
Frieza cocked his head as she turned and skipped to him, holding the pathetic flower up to him with a bright smile.
His cold gaze narrowed as he looked at the plant in disdain. "What is this?"
Bulma giggled. "It's for you, Mr. Frieza!"
His eyes snapped up to regard her in contempt and he sneered. "It's a dead plant."
"No, silly!" Bulma giggled again. "It's a present! It means I like you!"
The tyrant's eyes narrowed as his upper lip curled up in disgust. His right eye twinkled and the flower burst into flame in her hand; the little girl let out a yelp and dashed to Dr. Briefs' side, burying her face into the hem of his lab coat. The scientist gave Frieza a startled glance and all color drained from his face as he saw the look of pure murder on the Space Emperor's face.
"Clearly you fail to realize your place before me. I am LORD Frieza, the ruler of this galaxy and everything beyond, and you will bow before me. For I am your new god."
Bulma sniffled and peeked out at him with one eye. "I-I was only playing."
"This is no game, Child. Your lives, until such time that all seven Dragonballs are in my possession, belong to me. I decide who is to live and who is to die. Never forget that." He paused and his expression softened as he seemed to find his temper. "Never forget that and I may find use of you, Child." His sinister gaze snapped to her father. "Or you may just join your father in the Afterlife." His eyes twinkled again and Dr. Briefs' hands snapped to his chest as he let out a mighty grunt of agony.
Bulma looked up at her father as he doubled over, his eyes closed tight and his reddening face screwed up in what appeared to be unbearable pain. His body shuddered and he dropped to his knees heavily, his daughter stepping away from him to avoid being crushed.
"D-daddy?" she ventured fearfully. "W-what's wrong? Daddy?" She took a step towards him…
His chest exploded in a geyser of red and white, blood and bones spraying across the floor, as his lifeless body slumped into a puddle of his own blood. Bulma was silent as she stared at her father with a mortified expression on her tiny face. Her hand lifted as if to reach for him, but she stopped herself. Her eyes widened and she started screaming at the top of her lungs. Her little eyes were as wide as they could go, tears gushing down her cheeks as her voice rose into a prolonged shrill shriek.
Frieza scowled and barked out, "Quiet down this instant or I will do the same to you!"
But she clearly didn't hear him through her grief. Her face was purple by this point, the traumatized shriek carrying on into ear-splitting frequencies. Frieza cringed and his tail twitched towards her.
"I said QUIE-"
A door at the back of the bridge slid open and a green alien soldier with an elongated head ran in, "Lord Frieza! Three abnormally high power readings just appeared on the Scouters! They're practically on top of us!" The soldier slid to a stop and gave a blink as he took in the scene before him for the first time. He blanched at the dead body and then grimaced as he glanced at the still shrieking girl.
Bulma's scream stopped and she sank to her knees gasping for breath. Frieza wrinkled his nose up in irritation before regarding the soldier. "How abnormal are they?"
The soldier snapped to attention, grimacing at his lack of respect. Though thankfully hadn't noticed. "All three dwarf even Ma-I mean Captain Ginyu's highest recorded reading." He paused and averted his gaze timidly. "W-we could only g-get an accurate reading on the lowest one, S-sire. It was 290,000."
Frieza frowned, his eyes narrowing once more. "And the other two are higher, you say?"
"Y-yes, Sire."
"Hm. It is likely the fugitive Saiyans come to challenge me once more." He paused and looked down at Bulma again. "This child exhibits extraordinary intelligence. As such she now belongs to me. Soldier," he glanced at the foot soldier again. "Take her to be processed. We must…" he grinned wickedly. "Nurture the yo-"
A massive explosion ripped open his ship, cutting him off.
DBZ
Falmer grimaced as he regarded the devastation below him. Zether's surprise attack had obliterated more than half the ship. He knew destruction was inevitable, but he was far from ready to dive into it so early on.
"That was excessive," he remarked to his grinning brother.
"Nah man. Excessive would've been destroying the whole ship." He cackled mock-maniacally as Falmer gave him a sour look.
"Be serious! That was not enough to kill Frieza and you know it!"
"Hm. You're right." Zether stroked his bearded chin thoughtfully. "I guess that means I need to transform and do it again."
Falmer looked down at the flaming wreckage of the tyrant's ship, his senses focused on the still-stationary Frieza. He couldn't see him, but he could tell Frieza hadn't moved a muscle throughout the chaos. And that fact bothered him more than if Frieza were standing before them. He frowned and drew his lips into a thin line.
"Zether, be on your guard," Falmer cautioned. "We do not know how he is going to react to that."
"Allow me to answer that," a voice said in the same instant Falmer felt the massive power beneath them vanish and appear right behind them. He spun around in a flash, his arms raised defensively.
His eyes widened as he saw that Frieza had grabbed Zether's head from behind with both hands. His brother's eyes were wide as he grasped at the offending digits trying to free himself from the tyrant's deathgrip. Every vein and tendon in his neck was raised against his flesh as he fought in sheer desperation, his head shaking as he fought to keep his head faced straight ahead.
Frieza gave Zether's head a light turn, and the Gylderian's black aura exploded to life as he transformed into his red and black-haired Kin Slayer form.
"Futile." The tyrant gave Zether's head a violent jerk, snapping his neck with ease; the Gylderian's aura vanished and his hair returned to its natural gold as his lifeless eyes gazed upon Frieza from their new backward-facing vantage point. His arms dropped limply to his sides.
Zether was dead.
That fact hadn't completely settled into Falmer's mind before he was slamming violently into the ground amidst the raging inferno, debris flying as the ground exploded from the sheer force of the strike.
The white-haired Gylderian grimaced as pain wracked his body in steady waves. One strike and Frieza had fractured most of his bones. He was out of this fight. He weakly pushed himself up, his body trembling with the exertion. He couldn't focus his mind to even fathom what was going on, disorientation setting in like a fog.
His vision swam in and out of focus as he struggled to his knees. His head was like lead as he fought against encroaching darkness to find Frieza. He gathered himself to his feet, albeit unsteadily, and struggled to focus his senses enough to detect the Ice-jin's overwhelming power. Finally he spotted the tyrant marching towards him through the wall of flames, his smooth silver skin untouched by the heat.
Falmer cringed and clenched his fists weakly. There was no way he could stand against Frieza. He glanced to the side and spotted his brother's body lying in a crumpled heap.
"I should torture you to within an inch of your life for this transgression." Falmer reluctantly tore his gaze from Zether and looked at Frieza. "No one crosses Lord Frieza!" the tyrant spat venomously as he clenched his fists for emphasis. "It is time you insects learned your place in the universe."
Falmer swallowed back a lump in his throat and gave his head a slight shake. He couldn't think straight. He couldn't seem to get his focus back.
"Monster…" he mumbled weakly as fire shot across his fractured shoulder blades. "You're evil…Someone…has to stop you." Falmer couldn't help but to frown at what he'd said. It was almost like his mouth was operating beyond his control.
"Oh?" Frieza sneered as he drew to a stop, the orange flames reflecting in his mirror-like skin. "And just whom will stop me? Who can stand against the Mighty Lord Frieza?" He gave a sinister chuckle. "I am a god against the likes of you, Gylderian."
Falmer felt the corner of his lip arch into a smirk and he felt his eyes narrow challengingly. "Then I'll just have to change the stakes a little bit." What had gotten into him? This sudden arrogance, where was it coming from?
Finally…!
No…not again, no! Falmer thought desperately as the chaos sank in.
Some action…It's been too long…The raspy voice rose out of the darkness encroaching on Falmer's chaotic mind. His vision swirled, the flames of destruction blurring in and out of focus sending his stomach into nauseating somersaults. He was aware that Frieza was saying something, but the raspy voice of the Beast was now laughing in his head. He couldn't block it out, its volume rising to drown out everything else.
Let it go, Falmer. You need me if you want to survive.
"I need you…" he whispered breathlessly as he covered his face with both hands, fighting against the inevitable possession. He peered through his fingers as muscles all over his broken body began to convulse, his trembling gaze locking on the Ice-jin tyrant framed before him between plumes of rising smoke.
I cannot beat Frieza…
No, but I can.
His power is overwhelming, though. I-
It's happening whether you want it to or not. May as well accept it and move on. No sense in making it hard on yourself. Frieza raised his arm, his index finger pointing at Falmer as it began to pulsate with a purple radiance.
I…I cannot do this. I am not a warrior.
Today…you become one. Frieza fired his attack.
And darkness fell.
DBZ
(Individual Lies here! As usual I apologize for the tardiness of this chapter. I have no excuses. However I have been taking this time to hammer out a few details that have been causing me some issues. With that said Witness is in its final stretch and we are drawing to a close. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on your view point) that does not mean the end of these characters' stories. There will be a brief sequel following the conclusion of this story. Two, actually. But the first one I plan to work on will only be a few chapters long, while the second will probably max out at around 15. I'm not sure I really want to delve into another epic quite like Witness. It's been fun, but taxing. That's not to say I haven't enjoyed every second of it, though, because I have.
Anyway, I hope y'all don't hate me too much (who could hate ME?) and that I hope to see you all reading what is to come! Oh! Almost forgot. I also have another, unrelated, story that I am working on called Variance. I have a one-shot called A Slight Variation that some of you have read. Well Variance will pick up where that one left off…And I hope that it will be to your liking. Anyway, I'll close this out now. Thanks as always for reading and reviewing! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter!)
