Snake Way

Last time, on Dragon Ball E, Zuckro had been defeated by Caula. Okro had been laid into the dust shortly after the two had defused. Enraged, and restored to full power with the aid of a Senzu bean, given to him just in time by the arrival of Menken and Mr. Popo, Zuchin attacked Caula again, all by himself, this time as a Super Saiyajin 2. But, even the power he gained from ascending to the next level wasn't enough. Zuchin was laid back into the ground, and this time, it was for good. Okro, however, was not. What will Okro do now? Today, on Dragon Ball E!

Okro fought Menken and Mr. Popo as the three flew away from Caula. "Let me GO!" I'll KILL HIM! I'll kill him myself! NO ONE does that! Let me… GOOOO!" Even as he struggled, though, he knew they were holding him back for a good reason. Tears flowed from everyone's eyes. Zuchin had become Earth's strongest warrior… Any hope Earth had… died with Zuchin.

"We have to use the dragon. We have to! There's no other way! If we don't wish everyone back, Zuchin included, we're doomed!"

Finally, Menken spoke. "No. We have to make both of the wishes at once. Otherwise it'll be 4 months before the dragon balls are useable again. We do not use the dragon balls for this. I'm sorry, Okro… I wish he hadn't died, either… But we have to find some other way to win."

They finally made it back to the Lookout, and Okro couldn't do anything but sit on the edge of the Lookout and just stare off into space. Finally, he decided, he wouldn't wait. He couldn't. He shot off into the distance, flying at top speed to West City. To Capsule Corp.

There were clouds all around Zuchin; yellow clouds served as a ground covering from where he stood to the horizon. The sky was an odd pinkish color. There were clouds on the road he stood on, moving forward in a line. He found it odd that they were talking and complaining about being pushed and shoved and having others cut them in the line. He rose slowly into the air, flying just above them along the road up to the building which it led to. There, behind a huge desk, was a huge ogre-looking man. He blinked and looked down at the young saiyajin.

"Hmmmm… a Saiyajin? I didn't get many of those until recently… let's see… Zuchin, right? Just got killed by Caula, didn't you?"

It came back to him; the fight with Caula. "Wait, so I'm… dead?"

"I'm afraid so…"

"This is the afterlife?"

"Yes."

"Huh…."

"You've lived a good life… You can go to Heaven."

"WHAT?! You're just going to pass me on?! I have to take care of Caula! Without me, Earth is doomed!"

"Look, you have to move on; I've been overworked since Caula arrived on Earth."

"YOU CAN'T JUST LEAVE ME HERE! I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT CAULA!"

"Well… I suppose I could let you train with King Kai… but I don't see how much good it will do if you don't get wished back…"

"King Kai? Why does that name ring a bell?"

"He's the greatest teacher in the galaxy. But you have to travel Snake Way to get to him… and if you fall off, you'll fall into hell."

"I'll take that chance, if it'll help me to get stronger."

"Well, then… Snake Way is right through that door." Zuchin rushed for the door, pulled it open, and ran through.

He could see why they called it Snake Way. The end he was on had a snake head. He jumped up onto it. For a while, he walked, lazily. Yawning, he looked around himself at the scenery. "I could get used to this place…" Then it hit him. CAULA!

He started to run. He ran with all his might, and ran faster as he surrounded himself with a shining white aura. He moved so fast past an ogre, all the ogre knew was that a breeze had gone by.

Okro, meanwhile, had landed at Capsule Corp. He walked into the place, even though it was half ruined. He ran through, searching, searching for survivors… No one was left alive, though, but he did find one thing intact. A small device, which he'd gone there to get. The Dragon Radar. He pressed the button. There was a dragon ball nearby! He looked around… there. Grabbing it, he quickly picked it up, and found a bag that was lying nearby. He'd get a backpack, later, to make it easier to carry… He had his first dragon ball. He didn't care what Menken said. They had to stop Caula.

Zuchin blinked, starting to think he was no closer than he'd been a couple of days ago. Or at least, he thought it was a couple days… time didn't seem to pass properly here. "Hmmm… I can move quicker as a Super Saiyajin…" As he ran, there was a flash as his aura flared and turned gold, along with his hair, and his eyes turned green. He ran along the road, following every twist and turn.

There was something tiring about all this running, and Zuchin was getting hungry. After a moment, he thought about it. "Why am I running?" So, instead of following the twists and turns, then, he started to jump from across spaces, to save time. But eventually, even that stopped helping. He sat down.

"Maybe sleeping will help." He curled up into a ball, his tail covering his eyes. After sleeping for a while, he woke up. "Ugh…. How long was I out? Man… I'm still hungry. Shouldn't that cut out when I died? Huh… Maybe I should stop running, and start flying."

So he lifted into the air and flew at full speed, staying along the path so he wouldn't get lost. Finally, after several days trip, he reached the end. A small planet, perhaps the smallest he'd ever seen, was at the end. He blinked, lifting into the air towards it, and was suddenly pulled towards it and slammed into the ground. Powering down, he stood. There was the sound of a slamming door, and a funny-looking man came into view, short and squat. Zuchin blinked. "You must be King Kai?"

"Yes, I am, indeed. And you're Zuchin, aren't you? One of the two boys that were fighting Caula. He killed you, then?"

Zuchin's jaw dropped. "How did you know?"

"I know everything. Well… let's get to training you. I will teach you the techniques that I taught to Goku, if you can handle them."

"Well, if I can't get back to Earth, how is it going to help any?"

"Your friend Okro is looking for the Dragon Balls right now."

Zuchin looked up suddenly, his face serious. "When do we start?"

Zuchin is ready to start his training with King Kai. And Okro is out, looking for the Dragon Balls to bring him back to life. But trouble brews on the horizon. Caula is still on the loose, and Zuchin doesn't have much time before Okro wishes him back. Time is running short, next time, on Dragon Ball E!