Chapter 4 Evolution: Last of a Race Pt 1
She appeared from the endless depths of space onto the Warrior King's planet. Although she was the direct opposite of the very deity that the Saiyans worshiped, she was hailed with great celebrity.
Although the majority of the race's beliefs were geared towards the moon, the Saiyans adopted her as their patron Goddess eternally. These Saiyans were of a newer breed than the ones of old. Now, they embraced the passion of life, embodied in the Sun as well as the Eternal Twilight embodied in the darkness of the Moon. The entity formally known as Jean Grey, had finally found peace that she was never able to attain while in her home dimension. Dark Phoenix had finally found purpose in life, in the very thing that she embodied, passion and destruction.
It was at his Goddess's council, that King Vegeta paired his only daughter with General Kakarotto's eldest. To speak truthfully, he never had any objection to the matching, believing that his "baby" go only to the strongest.
Never would he let a weak character step within 1000 feet of his child, and Gen. Kakarotto's eldest surpassed everyone in any known quadrant of the universe. Even as a child, Gohan possessed great power. When he learned to embrace it, it became unequivocal, unparallel, and unquestionably undeniable.
Vegeta journeyed to his adopted home world, Earth to consult the seer Baba on his annual Sabbath. She informed him that his grandchild would be something "beyond" Saiyan; the greatest ever known, "evolved"; Godly. She un-regretfully, never informed him of the price. The entire universe was to be sacrificed, never to be resurrected, so that this event would become truth.
Baba guarded this knowledge jealously, not even informing her superiors of this action; for everything must come to an end. She had lived a long and fruitful life. Immortality is truly boring after a while, and she had earned her rest.
So, Princess Bura was wed to General Son Gohan, Commander of the Saiyan-Earthen Frontier Forces. Secretly, they fell in love long before that. This appointment only made things…less complicated. Exactly two wonderful years after the marriage, the entire Northern Quadrant celebrated the birth of Prince Son Marcellus Vegeta, thirty sixth prince, and Heir to the House of Vejiitasei, last scorn of the Ox.
The new Saiyan Prince was brought before the Saiyan Goddess to be blessed. She gathered him up into her arms, thinking of a time that never was. As she smiled at the scowling infant in her arms, a wave of motherly instinct swept over her; warmth rose up from her eternal soul.
She placed a slender, loving hands on his head; her whole body radiating warmth. A blazing aura surrounded the Phoenix turned deity and the newborn Saiyan prince; lighting up the cathedral. The assembly of witnesses sat awestruck. The Alter of the Saiyan Goddess lit with cosmic fire, scouring throughout the entire structure; yet nothing turned to ash. Flames of life bathed the occupants in its ethereal glory. The scowl turned into coos, as the young prince sought to grasp the new object of his attentions. The fiery deity glowed at the child in her arms, giving him a soft smile.
She tapped him lightly on the forehead, reaching out with her limitless mind; rapping his body in a tight, blazing blanket of fire. She reached into the mind of her child, seeking the devastating potential that she knew lay within. She found his guardian, the violent, towering, golden monstrosity, and soothed the savage beast. A soothing song play for the Oozaru, as his great head lolled around, its eternal rage long forgotten in the face of the fiery entity. He lay at her feet, his great head topping her height. She pat him on the muzzle, her gentle ministrations earning her a loud purr. She thought it ironic that a species that are more related to primates, purr like felines.
Satisfied that the mighty beast was tame, Phoenix opened her unfathomable mind, and imbued her essence into the young prince's mindscape. The sky erupted in cosmic fire, forever marking young Marcellus's mind. On the physical, the deity and child lay surrounded within the fiery embrace of the phoenix's aura. The Phoenix Force jumpstarted the child's latent mental prowess; reworking the barriers of his mind to resemble the ever expanding universe.
Dark matter made up of psionic power fueled the infantile verse. Dense molecular clouds collapsed burning with the ferocity of a million, supernovae; forming new star formations. One hundred million years of evolution occurred at the speed of limitless thought. Dark Phoenix filled the new universe with knowledge of life long lessons, and time long past. Lessons of how to wield his near infinite psionic power was engraved into his very being. She had the foresight to set dampeners on the young prince, and just as the ever expanding universe grows so too will his unfathomable mind.
Within the cathedral, the fiery display died down to nothing; save a low hum of energy, and the ever present warmth of the Saiyan Goddess. She sent a tendril of thought through to the babe, "This is my gift to you my child, and may you use it wisely. You need not fear any enemy. You are now and will forevermore be blessed by the Phoenix. I know you will make me proud."
The young prince heard these words, and offered his Goddess the reply that only a child could. For lingering moments, the deity held young Marcellus, cherishing them. With reluctance, she handed the child to his parents. "Go, with your Goddess's blessings my children. My Cleric, please see them home safely," she stated. The former demon/God turned holy man escorted his charge and his mate along with their entourage, back to the Royal Palace.
--
Time flew rapidly following the baptism of the Saiyan Prince. He was, at a little over two and one half Earth cycles, showing signs of frightening power. Daily, he all but destroyed the automated "playmates" that the Queen made for him. Even at his rather young age, he was assembling complicating puzzles using only his mind.
It was mind boggling to watch the young prince put together graphic galactic representations from his Grandmother's automated systems. Of course the Saiyan Queen gloated that he gets his monumental genius from her side of the family, and Gohan is not too shabby either. He was already flying, having learned the skill by watching his Grandfathers' sparring; which by the way added a whole new dimension of terror to the normal denizens of the palace.
Day 2, Annihilation Wave
"Lord Annihilus, the telemetry is off the scale," An unnamed servant exclaimed. "We are hitting the wormhole now. Do you wish us to attack, my liege? We are picking up unusual emissions from the northern quadrant. " "It matters not; this universe is traveling into my domain as well. It is mine to do with as I please, just as everything else is mine.
The masters of this place mean little to me, if we run into them, they will die as well," stated the master of the Annihilation Wave. "We are coming into range sire. What are your orders?" "Kill them all, and then destroy the planet. Shades of the core timeline do not interest me. This dimension is useless; Kyln was a test; the first to fall. This is just a prelude to the real destruction. Let them feel my wrath!"
A great tear in the fabric of space opened up above the skies of New Namek. Massive ships of innumerable number poured into the rent in space. "Ravenous, take The Centurion Seekers, and destroy the planet!" "With pleasure Sire!"
The Namekian Race never had a chance. The Centurions appeared directly onto the planet before anyone knew that what was happening. The fighter types held out for as long as possible, but they were no match for the Centurion Elite. Elder Muuri telepathically called for the immediate evacuation of the planet. Lord Annihilus must have gotten impatient because he sent his secondary forces into the battle. With over twelve million shock troops, the Fighters of the Namekian Race were overwhelmed with sheer numbers. Wave upon wave of creatures innumerable laid waste to everything they touched.
It was not a battle, it was annihilation. In just over one hour, Galactic Standard Time, the Namekian Race was reduced to a lowly one half percent of the population. By the time the Elder summoned the dragon, the population was down to one forth of the one. Not since the days of Frieza, had the planet Namek suffered this amount of devastation. As Porunga worked his wondrous magics, the Elder wept tears of sorrow for his slain children, but he knew that if anyone could contest with this Annihilation, Goku and his ilk could offer them vengeance.
The paltry sum total of the surviving Namekian Race appeared directly into the heart of the Saiyan throne room. The Royal Guard immediately snapped into action at the invasion upon the Saiyan Monarchy. Bolts of destructive force tore from the hands of the elite guard of the King. In a blink, Gen. Kakarotto extended his power in a blanket over the green intruders. "Halt your Advance!" the Saiyan King roared. We are amongst allies!" Seven round balls appeared from the fabrics of space, encircling the last remaining Nameks. The attacks, fat with murderous potency, fizzled out of existence, splashing over the General's shield. With a cursory inspection, the Commander in Chief of the Saiyan forces assessed the general health of the beings in front of him. "You there, send for the medics," the General all but barked. "Elder Muuri, what has bought the Namekians here in such a state?" "They just appeared…appearedandlaidwaste toNewNamekGoku help us please," an unknown Namek pleaded.
Two hours after the Annihilation Wave appeared onto the Namekian Planet, it was totally razed. "Lord Annihilus, the planet is ours." Ravenous reported. Good…good, redeploy my armada to the atmosphere, we are moving on." "As you command, my Lord." Annihilus' forces rejoined the mother ship of the wave. On the bridge of the ship, Ravenous stood before his Lord and Master. "Do you want the honors, Ravenous?" "We will have this moment Annihilus." Too long have we been denied our heritage. We will have this moment, and then we will ravage this dimension," Stated the Darkness. "Do as you will then. It matters not, to me."
Two beings, impossibly large appeared silhouetted before the Planet New Namek. Tenebrous of the Darkness Between, tasked with the black, the living matter that binds the universe and makes it whole, and Aegis of all Sorrows, tasked with culling the living universe of divergences and aberrations, stood in the devastated space of the doomed planet. Proemial Gods tasked to serve Cosmic Consonance; ordered to balance chaos. Imprisoned by the Cosmic Balance, they were set free by the Master of the Annihilation wave; unbound when it swept past the Galactic prison Kyln.
Tenebrous and Aegis lifted their hands, bluish energy coalescing over their frames, and struck the planet as one. Power harnessed from the Big Crunch itself swept from their outstretched hands, washing over New Namek. The planet evaporated within the raging energy river of pure cosmic might. The washout did not stop there. The beings opened up their limitless powers, and rained destruction along the entire galaxy. The space around New Namek ceased to exist, as powers derived from the heat death of the universe itself, reversed space and collapsed; morphed into an irresistible black hole forced along through the indomitable will of the two Proemial beings.
--
"Who appeared? What has happened?" "Calm down my child, it is over…for now." The Elder laminated. "King Vegeta, Gen, we know not who it was that appeared, only that they slaughtered our beloved home. They appeared before we knew what they were, or what they wanted. We could not raise a proper defense. Before we knew what was happening, my children's number was halved. What you see before you, is all that remains of the Nameks." The Elder offered.
"I see. Do you know what has befallen the planet?" The King questioned. "I know not. Porunga delivered my people from the hell that my planet became. I imagine that the intruders' intention is to either destroy it, or use it as a base. They did not seem to want slaves with the amount of death and destruction that they were dealing out."
"Sire, the long range scanners are picking up dangerous emissions from the vicinity of the Planet Namek." An unnamed tech said. "Vegeta, Planet Namek, along with their entire galaxy disappeared, swallowed in a hail of primal energies. What the hell is going on over there? The residuals are off the scale.
The whole galaxy is now just a singular black hole. To make matters worst, it's expanding. The black hole is expanding. If it is not stopped it will, in time, engulf the entire universe!" The Queen exclaimed. "General Kakarotto, arrange accommodations for our allies then, place a call for an emergency galactic vidconference. We must be prepared for these invaders." The King ordered over his shoulder. He briskly walked through the doors of his throne room, the queen trailing hot on his heels.
"Vegeta, what is going on here? Why are there Nameks holed up in the throne room? "From what we have been led to believe, a force of invaders appeared and annihilated the entire planet. Well, now they have apparently wiped the galaxy out as well. We know next to nothing of these invaders; not even a vague count of their number. I will not let the planet that I fought so hard to get back, be destroyed again; especially to some would be conqueror!" The King exclaimed.
"Our Goddess should be apprised of the current situation." I'll dispatch the message immediately." "No," the King said. "I'll go personally." Just as the King and the Queen reached the Royal Gardens, the King exerted his ki. "Give me about an hour, I will return shortly." "Hurry back Vegeta, we need you!" The Saiyan King offered his mate a rare smile. "Woman, you worry too much." And with that, the King rose sharply into the air towards the Sky Palace of the Saiyan Goddess.
"I offer my condolences my Priest." "I thank you my lady." Piccolo replied. "It seems that Vegeta has come to enlighten us on the current situation." Vegeta arrived at the Sky Palace of Pearl, and swiftly made a beeline towards his Goddess. He inclined his head towards the chosen priest of his Goddess. Piccolo returned the gesture. "My Goddess, I bring news most grave." "I am aware of the destruction of the Namekian space my faithful.
What disturbers me is the cosmic sources that perpetrated this horrendous atrocity. Although I loathe the loss of the Nameks, they can be brought back. The horrible perversion of space is my biggest concern; one that I fear the Eternal Dragon may not be able to overcome. These crimes were caused by beings that are my peers. Ultimately, I shall deal with my murderous brethren. Before the coming crisis, you must take the necessary precautions, and evacuate this planet. I would rather not see my children slaughtered as our allies were." "My Goddess, the Saiyans will not abandon their home, even with me ordering their evacuation." "My child, I know these emotions; that unbridialed passion. My child, you forget what I am. Once, in times long past, I was mortal, but I implore you to see my reasoning. I will not presume to order you my child, for I owe this race much.
I have come to love and share in everything that exemplifies this glorious race. I do not wish to see it destroyed…by anyone." "I understand my Goddess, I will do as you ask, but I cannot promise that they will leave." "That is all I ask Vegeta. Go, with my blessings. Take my loyal priest with you. His talents will be best utilized there, rather than here." The Goddess stated. "As you wish my Goddess." "You know Vegeta, I have a name. I once went by Jean; you can call me that if you wish." She offered with a radiant smile. "I will consider your request my Goddess." "See that you do." She stated. With that, the King and the former Demon King/God turned High Priest fled the Palace of the Phoenix, in route to Saiya City, Capital of Vejiitasei.
"We sense one of our ilk mortal. It lies to the north of this point. We will head there now. This will give us a chance to quantify our might before we take the World Devourer. In the coming conflict, we shall deal with this being." Tenebrous instructed to the master of the Annihilation Wave. Annihilus merely raised a non existent eyebrow at the being. "As you wish Tenebrous, I care not for whoever this may be. With or without your help, all shall fall before my might. Tenebrous fixed Annihilus with an eyeless gaze then turned to the viewport, staring out into the black abyss. No one challenged Annihilus's claim.
King Vegeta prepared to give his assessment to the Galactic Council as soon as Piccolo and he returned to the Saiyan Capital. The message was broadcasted throughout the Saiyan Empire, and all associated Planets within the Northern Quadrant. "Representatives, I wish that this call was under better circumstances, but it is not.
As of 0239 Galactic Standard Time, the Namekian Race was attacked by unknown forces. As of right now, there are only nineteen left alive, and the entire galaxy was assaulted, brutalized by these assailants. We have intelligence that they are currently in route to this planet. We will spearhead this movement here. Any additional forces that you can spare will be appreciated. We do not know the enemies' number, but it doesn't matter in the slightest.
They will be stopped here. This matter involves not only Vejiitasei, but every being in this alliance. I called this conference with the intention of making you abreast of the current situation. All soldiers that are currently deployed out of Saiyan battlespace will remain at their current destination. They will continue to provide support to our allies, and patrol their various sectors of the Sayian border. Planets under our jurisdiction will mobilize, and attempt to contain any wayward forces that assault your space. The Namekian Massacre will not will not go unpunished. We will not turn a blind eye to these invaders, the Saiyans will fight here!" The King exclaimed.
"King Vegeta we have heard your words, and we heed them. The Galactic Council accepts that this crisis is bigger than just one, and we must all fight for the sanctity of our various races. We will aid the Saiyans in their endeavor; the Namekian travesty cannot go unpunished. Please have your techs supply the proper information to our own, so that we can discuss specifics." The Grand Councilman announced. "It will be done Grand Councilor. On behalf of the Saiyan Empire, I thank you."
"Jean, you felt the upheavenial as well. What or better yet, who were those beings? Shin questioned. "They are beings from my home reality, born by the infant universe, in order to right the universal imbalance. I can take one of them, but not both. Not without destroying the future lives of this universe. There was a time when that would not have matter to me in the slightest, but my children have taught me how to embrace my darkness properly. I don't have to act on these impulses. I am a critical piece of the mosaic, and I will always exist; no matter the universe, timeline, or dimension. When I "die", I will merge with my proper form, back into the mainstream reality.
But, that does not mean that I will sacrifice the future of my children, in order to erase these beings from the past." "What will you have me do?" "Mobilize Heaven and Hell, Shin. If we fail here, they will annihilate the entire universe, all dimensions and everything attached to it. We will need all the help that we can muster. These are not Majin level creatures that we are dealing with here. I sense their purpose. It is not for us, we were just unfortunate enough to have a reality accessing point in that section of mainstream space. We have just gotten in the way of their plans.
I know Annihilus well. I can see into his black mind. He does not want this universe. It is merely a test for his forces; speed bump if you will. He will not take slaves, he does not want to rule this reality, and he cannot be bargained with. He will annihilate this universe and move on, back to the mainstream; my home, and attempt to subjugate that. All time, space, and reality stem from that dimension. It is the alpha and omega of the Tetragammon. Even this universe's Earth is a mere shade of what it is destined to be in the Prime Reality. Only the Saiyans, whom are the chosen of this reality, are of any real consequence in the Prime Divergence. Why do you think that they always survive, endure, and overcome? My home "Earth" is exactly the same. The Saiyans share their fate in the grand scheme of what is. The good thing is…nobody knows this; save the golden judge, and he has not interfered with the Saiyans in the past. I know because it is my lot to know. I am a child of the universe, I herald the new in by preserving the old in the twilight of its death. It is the Saiyans fate to destroy the old; directly or indirectly. If they become extinct, like they have in other shades of this reality, the universe has to find someone else to do the job. It is this event that will prove to the ancient universe if the Saiyans are the right choice. Their future is not yet written. Even if only one survives this, it will be enough. But still, I don't want my children to perish. Annihilus has no interest in ruling shades. He may take slaves here and there for his own sinister purposes but ultimately, he does not need this sphere of influence.
This universe is much more susceptible to his advances. You do not have the abstracts here for balance. For unknown reasons, they let this reality govern itself. The Saiyans are the universal balance here. They purge the weak in this reality. Maybe it is self-preservation, maybe not; nobody, even abstracts, wants to die. It is human nature. The Creator made it that way. I am the only one that will take an active stance in the defense of this dimension, and I can only do so much without endangering the future. For the sake of my children, and all beings of my adopted universe, I will do all in my power to defeat these menaces. Our battle may very well destroy the very prize that WE are attempting to protect. I just pray that I am up to the task." "Well, if you want a standup force, the Saiyans are the best that this universe has to offer." "My children are, if nothing else, rather efficient." Kaioshin offered up Dark Phoenix a smile. "I will relay your wishes to Dai Kaioshin Jean. Hopefully, we can escape this unscathed; I have also assessed the singularity, and it is eating up space at an alarming rate. I have found that I can't do anything for it…not without help." "It is moving well below lightspeed, this universe should be safe until this conflict is resolved. After that, I will assist you. If we pool our resources, I am positive that we should be able to avert the disaster." "Alright then Jean, I will take my leave then. Farewell." "Farewell Shin," she replied.
--
"Bulma, we must put this contingency plan into effect. I do not wish to see my entire entire universe dead; although I know the outcome. This universe's time grows very short Bulma; I have seen it. Marcellus's survival is paramount, and you know that Earth will not be spared this destruction. This plan is a solution…not the only solution mind you, but it is a solution none the less." "So you think that we won't survive? There must be something that we can do. Goku never loses when it counts!" "I fear that this is far beyond anything that Goku can handle.
With Gohan being the strongest currently, and the others not far behind, we have to take into account that Annihilus has fighters that are at least their equals; not to mention the two godly entities that are aiding him for whatever reason. Given time, those two alone WILL destroy this universe!" "Hell, Vegeta could do that, given time!" "That's not the point Bulma. The point is that we need to plan for this. They move closer every minute. At their current speed, they'll be here in a little under 48 hours." "I can't just kidnap random Saiyans. First off, I'm not strong enough..." "You are the Queen of the Saiyans Bulma, you command it, and they have to obey. You don't have to kidnap anybody! Alright, if you don't want to go with that plan, at least get Marcellus out. After this has ended, it will be a trifle to fetch him from where he ends up.
With Prince Trunks rendered sterile, he is the Heir to the Saiyan Throne. If anybody needs to be saved from this fate, it is him." The Queen let out a loud sigh…"Alright, lets talk specifics. I need my father in on this; I also want Gohan and Bura here as well; they are his parents, and ultimately have the final say. He is the Heir to the Throne of Vejiitasei, so naturally, Vegeta needs to know. I don't want anything going wrong with this plan of action. We need to have all variables covered. Hopefully, we won't have to implement this course of action Baba. I really don't want to see my family and all of my people dead." "Neither do I, Bulma…neither do I."
The Saiyan Populace did not even consider evacuation an option. They all, young and old, decided to stay and fight. Their pride being what it is, would not allow them to flee from any battle, much less, one that would decide the fate of their sector of space. The last ditch contingency plan for the Heir was implemented immediately. Headed by the Queen and the Imperial Father-in-law, they rigged a prototype Capsule Corps spacecraft to house the young prince. It was equipped with all the essentials, including the newest line of cappuccino machine.
They overhauled the basic learning AI that was inherent in all of the old space pods to include the history of the entirety of the Saiyan Alliance: planets, languages, cultures; the works. The King figured that the Heir needed to learn all of that, in order to better run the Alliance if, there was one left to run. Of course, the Queen and ChiChi included all current knowledge of the math's and sciences. Gohan and Kakarotto thought to add a by name list of combat techniques and strategies. Along with the ever present gravity generating well, recordings of various vids of spars and battles were hardwired into the computer system. This way, if there was no one left to teach the Heir the ways of combat, he would know all there was to know about fighting as a warrior. All in all, everyone was happy with the way that the project turned out.
The plan was straight-forward. At the start of the battle, Marcellus would be put in suspended animation, inside the ship. The ship would then be shot into space on a trajected course into the neighboring quadrant of space. When the battle was finished, a company of warriors were to be dispatched to retrieve the Prince. In the event that the planet was destroyed, the AI was programmed to "jump" dimensions, on an intersecting path to Kaioshin Kai. There, Kaioshin would oversee his training. In that event, he would be the last Saiyan left, and most likely the universe's only hope to stave off permanent annihilation.
Despite all of the careful planning and contingencies, the Saiyans still underestimated the sheer numbers of the enemy they faced. Their long range scanners picked up Annihilus' forces as soon as they entered Saiyan space, but by then, it was too late to head them off. The Annihilation Wave's elite forces, headed by Ravenous, teleported directly onto the planet; immediately causing general havoc, but they had no idea who they were facing.
"Lord Annihilus, we are almost in teleportation range." The lead tech stated. "Excellent. Ravenous, move half the force to the teleportation arrays, and wait. Annihilate the planet. Leave no survivors. Take the fleet with you." "As you wish my Lord."
"King Vegeta, the enemy fleet is at the rim of the galaxy. ETA to our planet is approximately four hours." "Are the counter measures in place?" "Yes Sire." "Then everyone into your positions, we will wait for them to show."
"Lord Annihilus, we are in teleportation range now." "Go then…Annihilate Them!"
Millions of brilliant lights dance, as the Annihilation Wave forces converge on Planet Vegeta.
Millions upon millions of crack troops, the Wave of Annihilation, appeared upon the planet of the Saiyans. The war for the universe has begun. The rest of the Northern Quadrant held their collective breaths, awaiting the outcome. It was destined to go down as the greatest battle since the War of the Kais that originally split the universe into its core parts.
Author's Note:
This chapter was originally supposed to be all one chapter, but time restraints have it broken down into two.
Sorry for the long wait.
Enjoy!
Cash