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Chapter 7
Kami quickly headed for the courtyard as Mr. Popo's shout reached him. When had Piccolo escaped? The last he had known, Piccolo was trapped in a rice cooker at the bottom of the sea. The fact that he was here, without Kami being aware of it, was unnerving. Stepping into the light, Kami stared at his counterpart.
Gohan looked from his sensei to Kami. They had never had the best relationship, which overall was to be expected. Kami had separated intentionally from Piccolo. He had cast him out into the world, unworthy of being part of the whole. Apparently, even though Piccolo had fused with their Kami, he was still uncomfortable dealing with another version of him.
'All yours kid.'
Stepping forward, Gohan bowed politely. Piccolo's snort of disgust rang through his mind at the action. "It is good to see you again Kami."
"Again… I do not believe we have met." Kami squinted his eyes in puzzlement before turning to Piccolo. "Piccolo, I see you have escaped your confinement and regained your youth. Why are you here?"
Gohan kept his expression neutral as he looked at Kami. If he was surprised at Piccolo's age that could only mean that he was thinking Senior, not Junior. 'Do we tell him? He is the Guardian of Earth.'
'More like a meddlesome old fool.' Piccolo fought the need to snarl at the man. It seemed that Kami would always evoke such feelings in him. 'Feh, go ahead. We don't need him bringing everyone in. It would only make things more difficult.'
"Sir, my name is Son Gohan. I think you should know my father, Son Goku."
Kami returned his attention to the young man, "Son Goku? No, I do not know…Wait, I remember a boy named Goku climbing Korin's Tower years ago, but he was never sent up." Kami's confusion was becoming more evident by the moment. He had expected Piccolo to react violently, not just stand quietly. "You do not feel evil young Gohan; your heart is not weighed down by hatred. Why are you with Piccolo?"
"That's complicated sir. Could you tell me, have there been any battles on the Earth since the 23rd WMAT?" Gohan asked deliberately. It did not make sense that Kami was here, unfused from Piccolo. That there was no Piccolo Junior was even more disturbing.
"Battles? No, the world has been at peace for many years. Are you okay son?" Kami stepped forward, his hand outstretched in concern.
Piccolo growled in irritation, glancing pointedly at the offending hand. How dare he call Gohan son? It was almost as insulting as when the old man had applied the term to him.
Gohan made a low sound of reassurance and subtly shifted his weight closer to Piccolo. His eyes lost their focus as he considered the ramifications of a peaceful world. Extending his senses, he was hard-pressed to find the Z-Warriors. Their power levels were laughably small compared to what he was used to. Maculo and Papula would defeat them easily as weak as they were.
Kami dropped his hand, stunned by the casual display he had just witnessed. This young man had just easily calmed Piccolo down. Come to that, Piccolo had seemed upset, protective even, when he had reached out to Gohan.
"Kami, I need you to listen to me very carefully. What I am about to tell you will sound insane, but I need you to trust me, please." At Kami's nod, Gohan continued. "I need you to find Piccolo, not this Piccolo, but the one connected to you."
Tentatively, Kami reached along the thin thread forever connecting him to the Demon King. His eyes widened as the thread took him to the depths of the ocean instead of directly across from him.
"I assume you found him," Gohan stated quietly. "This is King Piccolo's son, well his reincarnation, Daimou Piccolo, Jr. We were sent here from a different reality. Don't ask; it would take to long to explain." Gohan held up a hand, forestalling Kami. "Just know that we mean you and the people of the Earth no harm. We are hunting down some mischief-makers. They are hiding on your world. They are incredibly powerful; no one on the planet is strong enough to face them."
Kami frowned severely, "I do not know what it is like where you come from, but I assure you, there are many warriors ready to stand against a challenge."
Piccolo growled menacingly once more. "Show him." It was the first thing he had said aloud since arriving.
"Brace yourself," Gohan warned. Flinging a ki sphere around them, Gohan trapped Kami in with them. Sliding into a stance, Gohan dipped into the well of his power, stopping just before the threshold of his transformation.
Kami stumbled, falling to his backside.
"This is a fraction of the power the ones we seek possess, old man. Do you still wish to send your warriors?" Piccolo stood imperiously over the Earth's Guardian.
Turning his back to man, Piccolo nodded to Gohan; silently telling him to power down. Inwardly chuckling at the dark amusement rolling through Piccolo, Gohan let go of his power. Lowering the sphere he watched Kami gain his feet, albeit shakily.
"What do you need from me?" Kami's tone was considerably less haughty than it had been moments ago.
"Keep everyone out of it. Do not let the champions of this world charge into our fight." Gohan stated. Bowing again, he showed the respect Kami's office was due. "Goodbye Kami, it truly was good to see you again."
Walking to the edge of the Lookout together, Piccolo and Gohan took off, zeroing in on their prey.
Kami stood, frozen in bemusement. That version of his angry counterpart had moved in perfect tandem with that boy. That kind of ease, that physical connection, only comes from a deep and prolonged friendship. Maybe there was hope for his own counterpart. Walking to the edge of the Lookout, Kami kept watch.
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Gohan and Piccolo hovered over the decimated remains of a village. In the center, Papula was clapping excitedly. "Do it again Maculo! Do it again!"
The yellow gnome grinned happily. Waving his arms dramatically, he charged a ki blast. Firing it in an arching sweep, the red energy engulfed the area around them. As the resulting explosion and fire surrounded them, Papula let out a high-pitched giggle.
'There is something off with these two Piccolo.' Gohan eyed them apprehensively. 'Both times we've caught up to them, they've been intent on mindless destruction. What's the point of it?'
Piccolo wished he had an answer for that. Every single major battle they had been in, their opponent had had a clear goal. Frieza and Mavoy had each desired to rule the universe. Garlic had wanted to reign over the Earth. Even Cell's desire to show and prove his perfection had been clear, if ridiculous. But these two, what were they up to?
'Trap them quickly,' Piccolo demanded. 'We can't let them slip away again.'
As one, Piccolo and Gohan rocketed towards the ground, powering up as they approached. Gohan burst into his transformation just in front of the jumpers. Taking advantage of their shock, Gohan threw a ki sphere around all four of them.
"No, you aren't any fun. Go away." Papula demanded.
"Why did you do this?" Gohan's voice was whisper soft, masking his rage.
"Did you see me?" Maculo asked. Gohan had an eerie sense of familiarity at not only the question, but also the manner in which it was asked. Goten did the same thing.
"We saw you, but why did you do it?" Piccolo growled out.
"Pretty. We like the pretty colors. See," Maculo pointed to the raging fire surrounding the area. "It's pretty, so much better than the white place."
"Shhh! That place is bad." Papula rounded on his partner, scolding him.
'White place…they must have been trapped in the Fold at some point.' Gohan recalled the discussion he had had with Shin after that first day. Apparently, most mortals exposed to the Fold lost their minds. The endless expanse of nothing, complete and utter nothingness, ate away at the sanity of those trapped within; eventually corrupting the mind to the point of shutdown. 'What do you want to bet that they don't even remember why they crossed the boundaries of reality in the first place?'
'If that's the case, there won't be any reasoning with them. We need to take them out before the kill again.'
"This place is no fun anymore!" Maculo's announcement drew their attention. "Bye-bye!" The two gnomes jumped into the air, preparing to leave. Upon reaching the top of the sphere surrounding them, they fell back to the ground.
"I want you to stay." Gohan stated firmly.
Raising his power level, Gohan slid into an offensive stance. Piccolo mirrored the actions. Together they charged the jumpers. In perfect sync, they fired dual Masenko attacks. Pinning the gnomes in between the blasts, the Guardians sought to wipe them from the face of existence.
Papula screamed, his red skin turning fuchsia in his rage. He began to glow brightly and the space around him rippled violently. Papula reached out and grabbed Maculo before disappearing with an ear-shattering boom.
The concussive force of the exit, compounded by the clashing Masenko blasts, reverberated furiously within the sphere. Gohan and Piccolo were driven into the ground under the onslaught. Desperately, Gohan let the sphere fall away, releasing the pent-up wave.
Spots danced before Gohan's vision as he fought against the encroaching darkness. Crawling over to his fallen companion, he noted the violet blood leaking from Piccolo's ears and nose. With the fire inching closer to them, Gohan grabbed Piccolo. Throwing him over his shoulder, he took to the air slowly. The demi-Saiyan made it just past the borders of the fire before his transformation failed and the darkness enveloped him.
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Goku watched his sons working through their training drills. He had been thrilled when Chi-Chi had actually agreed to let him start training them. She had always refused before, something about it interrupting their studies.
"That's good Gohan! Just extend your leg a little more and you'll have it down." Goku walked over, demonstrating the roundhouse kick.
"Okay, like this?" Gohan moved through the movement once more.
"Better, keep going and—" Goku broke off, his knees trembling as an enormous power overwhelmed his senses.
"What is it Daddy?" Goten ran over, tugging on his father's pant leg.
"Stay here, do not leave. Nimbus!" The fluffy yellow cloud answered its master's call. Goku jumped on his old friend and raced out of sight.
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High above the Earth, Kami watched the failed assault. "Mr. Popo, hurry, come with me!"
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Just moments after the massive power had washed over Goku, it dropped to a barely noticeable throb. Even without the energy to guide his flight, Goku easily found his way due to the rolling black smoke filling the horizon. Jumping off Nimbus, he ran into the inferno, searching for survivors. Everyone was dead.
Goku coughed, trying to clear the smoke from his lungs, as he ran to the outskirts of the destruction. Blinded by watering eyes, he literally tripped over the fallen Guardians.
"G-Gohan?" Reaching out in concern, Goku was stopped by a green hand.
"Mr. Popo, take them back to Lookout." Kami turned to the man before him. "You must be Son Goku." At Goku's nod he continued. "I am Kami, the Guardian of the Earth. I have a task for you."