Advent

"It's there!" Chiaotzu whispered to Tien from the dune overlooking the capsule house. "I can make out the Dragon Ball's echoes over there! It's faint but steady."

"How shall we proceed, Master Tao? Stealth?" the three-eyed man asked.

"No need for that. We're in the middle of nowhere. I think it's the right time for a little shock and awe."

The trio made their way towards the capsule house and Tien was given the honor of "knocking." Once certain Chiaotzu was safely behind him, the triclops charged his Ki into the tips of his fingers and pointed at the door. A beam shot out, spiraling tighter and tighter until it struck the door and splintered it apart with a bang.

Tien didn't wait for the smoke to clear before striding into the capsule house. After all, what threat could the Briefs girl possibly pose to an assassin? The answer came in the glint of moonlight on gun-gray metal and a hail of bullets as the girl opened fire.

His hands were a blur. And when the staccato of her rifle and the jingle of metal jackets went quiet, the triclops dropped the bullets to the floor, one flattened round at a time. Their blue-haired target could only drop her jaw and her weapon in shock.

"You've gotten much faster, Tien," his mentor praised, stepping past him and into the capsule house.

"Thank you, Master," the three-eyed man bowed before glancing back to check on Chiaotzu. The little red-cheeked boy peered around the broken door frame and came in when Tien gestured that it was safe for him to enter.

"Who's that?" the floating child asked, pointing to the dark-haired girl who had donned a broken helmet and yelled, "You stay away from us!"

From the cracked gem came a scatterburst of pencil-thin beams that punched holes through the house's walls. When the dust settled, it became apparent that her attack struck at everything except the trio.

"Nice lightshow, kid," Tien mocked, brushing plaster off his shoulders and Chiaotzu's head. "Why don't you put that away before you hurt yourself?"

"Why don't you three put your hands up before I blow you all to kingdom come?" the blue-haired girl growled. And for the first time, Tien wondered what sort of family the Briefs were that the heiress could wield not only a semi-automatic rifle but an RPG as well.

Master Tao only chuckled and opened his mouth only to have the girl snarl, "I swear to Kami if you say something like I like a girl with spirit you get the first one-way ticket to boom town."

The braided man laughed, "Go right ahead, my dear. I do enjoy traveling."

Those blue eyes narrowed at the taunt and she pulled the trigger. But Tien wasn't worried. Master Tao was the best assassin in the business. And when the man lightly brought his leg up, Tao's knee gently nudged the grenade upward to explode against the ceiling and collapse the dome's structure around them.

Tao stood over the groaning figure of Bulma Briefs. So much trouble for this slip of a girl. If his employer hadn't given him such a ridiculously obscene amount of money he would have thought this task beneath an assassin of his caliber. He bent down to yank the girl up by the scruff of her blouse when a leg attempted to kick his arm away.

"You leave Bulma alone!"

So, the Briefs girl has a mini-bodyguard, does she? Tao soundlessly chuckled to himself. With one finger he blocked the strike, felt a slight sting from the impact before he flicked the dark-haired girl away. She twisted awkwardly but managed to land on her feet. A better look showed him that her stance was sloppy and the many ways to unbalance her. But there was power in that kick, and he recalled the gem she'd used to fire ki-beams. There was a suggestion of a diamond in the rough in the girl and he had an eye for talent, "You have potential girl, would you like to become my student?"

She looked taken aback by the offer but she recovered quickly enough and declared, "Never! I'm going to learn under Master Roshi!"

Tao quirked a brow, Roshi? There was a name he hadn't heard in, well, decades. "You'd just be wasting your time, girl. That old fool's teachings or techniques won't do you any good in this day and age."

"I don't care! You're with the Red Ribbon Army and I'm going to destroy them!"

This time even his students joined Tao in laughter. "Destroy the Red Ribbon Army, she says. Oh this is too rich." He hopped up into the air to avoid the low sweeping kick, easily sidestepped the girl's punch, and was about to leap forward to counter when he was yanked back by his braid.

"I will kill you," Bulma rasped, tightly gripping the length of his hair and throwing her full weight when she gave another vicious yank. Tao grit his teeth against the stinging of his scalp, found his footing, and threw an elbow into her gut, just strong enough to knock her out. It was uncharacteristically gentle of him because rich, spoiled brats were oh-so-delicate and his employer wanted her relatively unscathed when he brought her back to base.

Tien was quick to catch the blue-haired girl's unconscious form only to lose custody of her when the sole of the dark-haired girl's boot deeply imprinted against his cheek. The female warrior protectively stood between them and the Briefs girl.

Catching Tien off-guard takes remarkable speed, Tao mentally acknowledged but outwardly snorted, "What's the matter, Tien? Can't handle a little girl?"

It was a pity that she was dead-set on learning from Roshi of all people. It might have been interesting to have a female student for a change. The chilly desert wind kicked up sand and Tao suddenly lifted his hand. With two fingers, he deftly halted a dao from cleaving into his the side of his skull.

"It seems we have company," Tao smirked up at the silhouette standing atop one of the dwarf-mountain's outcrops.

A/N: I probably shouldn't enjoy writing Tao this much. As always, reviews are loved and appreciated!