Chapter Forty-six - The Second
Cold stood beside Inferna aboard his ship in one of the lab rooms. Their people had worked endlessly and tirelessly over the last however long it had been. The project leader was sure it had taken them eight months to complete the work, at least two of the staff said the job was done in only six weeks. Most of them felt it was somewhere between four and five months that they'd worked on it. Cold and Inferna, who had barely left each other's sides since arriving in this strange place, felt it had been closer to five or six months since the project had started.
Kais knew it had been long enough they'd completed their exploration of the circular hallway and adjacent rooms, which was still barely a fraction of the full space. The cursory exploration only, that is. Popping into rooms long enough to figure out what they were for and then moving on, usually. Two rooms they'd found, after the shrine to the great heroes of Nigiro, had prompted more detailed examination. One had appeared, upon first glance, to be an endless and empty void of black nothingness. More intriguing, still, was what happened upon entering that void, for the void would vanish. It was replaced, at once, by something else.
Something that changed depending on who entered the room first and what they were thinking when they did so. Cold and Inferna had used the void room to re-create their own throne rooms, to re-create open expanses of terrain from their worlds and dozens of others, to re-create the bridges of their ships, and countless other places. The techs had done likewise, creating massive and extremely advanced laboratories. They had soon found that that which was created within the room could not be taken out but could be used perfectly within. Everything from the most simple of equipment to the most advanced of computers. The techs had since appropriated the space, at Cold and Inferna's blessing, to create a massive lab and computer system to speed their work along.
The other room they'd found of great interest to them had been far simpler to understand than the Void Room. A hundred glass tubes filled with blue, green, yellow, or red liquid. Each linked to computers thousands of years more advanced than anything in the four galaxies. Even so, it took them only an hour, or what had felt like an hour anyway, to determine what the tubes were and did. They'd come to call it the Fabrication Room. When properly mixed with the others each liquid was used to create something different through a process beyond the understanding of any of their scientists.
The yellow and blue liquids were used in specific concentrations and after specific processing to create the Record Orbs they'd discovered previously. The yellow, blue, and green liquids would, in the right mixture, become a type of metal a thousand times stronger than anything they knew of, and a hundred times lighter. A metal so strong that it took all of Inferna's strength to bend it, even slightly. All four liquids together processed into organic material. Nothing specific, no living kind of creature, but a nutrient rich compound that was clearly meant for eating.
Blue and green could be mixed to create a strong translucent material, some sort of clear stone or metal, they weren't entirely sure. Not as durable as the metal they'd discovered previously but still stronger than the metals used in building their ships. Blue, red, and yellow in one mixture produced another type of metal, the same stuff used in the circuitry of the recording device. In another mixture the three liquids produced the very stone that the shrine itself was made from. Other combinations of liquids, at different mixture settings, produced different things. Hundreds and hundreds of possible combinations, each producing something entirely different, all stored in and regulated by the computers. And somehow, the liquid in the tubes never seemed to deplete.
The Void Room had been used to create more computers to help with the data decoding and formatting process. The Fabrication Room had been used to construct new computers and materials needed to do everything that had to be done. Together those two rooms had sped up the entire process considerably. And now, at last, the final steps had been undertaken and the two Masters were watching the data stored in the Record Orb they'd found previously download into a new storage computer their men had built. A computer that was linked in with his and Inferna's ships and would act as a 'translator' for the foreign data and their own computers.
"Transfer progressing normally." a tech said from where she sat at her terminal. "Data stream is good, transfer rate is smooth, acquisition level is one-hundred percent, read-write is at 340 apm. Do we have any open bandwidth?"
"Affirmative." replied another. "Transfer is only absorbing sixty-percent of available space."
"Recommend rate increase by thirty-five percent." said the first.
"Increasing transfer rate by thirty-five percent." replied the second.
A moment later the first tech spoke again. "Rate increase confirmed, transfer still normal. Data stream good, transfer rate is smooth, and acquisition remains at one-hundred percent. Read-write now at 477 apm, just shy of maximum speed. We are at transfer limit. Estimated transfer time, three hours sixteen minutes and forty-two seconds."
"So, three hours until completion?" asked Cold.
The female tech nodded. "Assuming all time-frames remain aligned between systems." she replied. "We're watching for sudden drops or spikes in data transfer to indicate a temporal alignment shift between locations. I don't expect one, though."
"Why not?" asked Inferna.
"Because the systems are linked." she replied. "We have two working theories on the time flow here. Rigid Time and Elastic Time. Rigid Time goes with the idea that time pockets exist, perhaps even in motion around the planet, and that time passes at the rate determined by the pocket. No variance exists inside the pocket, and no outside force can act on the pocket. Hence, rigid. Elastic means that time has no set flow anywhere on the planet and snaps back and forth like a rubber band where and when it likes, but this rubber band is linked to individual systems. So no matter how much it snaps your head is never in a different time frame than your feet."
"So since the computers are linked..." said Cold.
"Exactly. One is the head, the other is the foot. The time frame between the two is set without variance. And since our computers are linked to them they're set in the same flow. Only thing we might notice is the countdown suddenly going faster or slower." She shrugged then. "But time variance between unlinked but proximate entities tends to be minimal, so I find it unlikely we'll even notice that. It's one reason so many advocate rigidity. I don't buy it, though. Rigidity doesn't allow for feet and head to never exist in separate time flows, or for working long-range communications."
Cold nodded and was about to say more when his scouter beeped indicating an incoming message. Reaching up he activated the communicator. "What is it?" he asked.
"The shrine just glowed blue." replied Fyuu. "We're evacuating all personnel now."
"Understood. We'll be there shortly." He lowered his hand and sighed. He'd hoped to see this transfer through to the end, just in case anything came up. And to avoid any kind of time shift that made it take longer than he felt it should. But it would seem that their next host was coming. "Blue light." he said, turning to Inferna and motioning toward the door. "The shrine just glowed with it."
"It appears our next Shitennou has arrived." said Inferna, walking out of the lab with him.
"That would be my guess." replied Cold. "I had hoped to see what was in that orb first, so that I would have a few more questions ready to ask him." The two had already decided that he would deal with this one if he could. As the two of them stepped out of his ship they spotted Fyuu and the other members of his guard ushering the scientists out and down the stairs. By the time they reached the stairs up to the shrine the building had been cleared.
"Everyone is out and accounted for." Fyuu said.
Cold merely nodded as he gazed up the steps toward the door into the shrine. He felt there was no reason to head inside since the battle would likely be moved out here anyway, as it had before. Not that he could really blame the Shitennou for wanting the battle to occur out doors. Fights on a power scale of this level were never sensible to hold indoors. Not when a single attack could level a large portion of the structure. He wanted the shrine to suffer as little damage as the Shitennou did, it was a well of knowledge he had no desire to surrender.
It was a few moments later that Fyuu's scouter beeped as it picked up a power level, one once again too low for Cold to sense. He didn't bother asking for a reading, it didn't matter how low his opponent could push his power. All that mattered was how high it would go once he stopped. So he stood in silence with Fyuu on his left and Inferna on his right as he waited for the second of the Shitennou to emerge. When he at last did a moment later Cold arched an eyebrow at the sight of him.
Blue stone armor, chain mail, blue skin, and red hair. Similar appearance to the last one but not identical to him. There was enough likeness he was certain the man was definitely the next Shitennou, and that was about the extent of it. The man looked down toward him for a moment, seemed to frown, and then started down the stairs.
"I am Zojo, second of the Shitennou." the man said. "You are trespassing on hallowed ground and are in defiance of the sacred laws of Souzousha. For this, your sentence is death."
"As straight to the point as the last one, I see." said Cold as Fyuu and Inferna moved aside.
Zojo watched them go, though without letting Cold out his line of sight either. Once the two of them had moved out to the sidelines, where Inferna and Cold's crews stood, he turned his focus back to the one still before him and frowned more. "Your victory over Jikoku has filled you with overconfidence if you intend to fight me alone."
"Not my victory." said Cold. "That would be hers." He jerked a thumb toward Inferna then, and Zojo looked toward her for a moment, then frowned again.
"She does not have the power." Zojo said after a moment.
"Perhaps not in her current form." said Cold with a shrug.
"A transformation?" Zojo wondered, still looking at her. "Have transformations been restored?"
"Restored?" asked Cold.
Zojo turned his gaze back to Cold. "Transformations were sealed for all races long ago." he said.
"Oh?" said Cold, surprised. "I myself am already transformed and your friend didn't seem surprised when Inferna transformed."
"He has more contact with the Four Galaxies than do I. Many who have come here have challenged him. I, on the other hand, have only come out to fight five times in this universe. Six, counting the present." With that he reached up and drew a red staff from behind hs back. "I suppose I should not be surprised that transformations have been restored since my last battle, it is very rare indeed for anyone to challenge me otherwise."
"And why," began Cold, drawing his sword. "Not to mention how, would transformations be 'sealed' in the first place?"
"I'm not surprised he didn't mention it." said Zojo. "He thinks it's unimportant until he's defeated, which I suppose it is in a way. As I said, you are in defiance of the sacred laws of Souzousha. That is because you are fighting against us instead of accepting your sentence. For each Shitennou you defeat a penalty is incurred. For defeating Jikoku the power of transformation is sealed within the Four Galaxies."
Cold fidgeted a little where he stood. Off to the side he noticed Inferna doing likewise. She knew as well as he did that the sudden loss of transformations would completely alter the face of power in the universe. Cell would be the most powerful organic being in the universe, Piccolo would be second. The Androids, however, would be the strongest. 17 and 18 would be nearly on par with Cell, if he were to revert back to his first stage. 16, Gero, and Videl, they would all be stronger. In fact... "Loss of transformations would make Videl the most powerful Master. There's no telling what sort of chaos that would create." he thought.
"Has this happened already?" he asked.
"No." replied Zojo. "The penalty is not meted out until matters here have been resolved and then all penalties are dealt at once."
Cold nodded. That was good to know. He didn't want the universe tearing itself apart while he was trapped here. "And if you are defeated? What is the 'penalty' for that?"
"The penalty for that is death." he responded. "Death to the entire family line, two generations up and two generations down, of those who defy the sacred laws of Souzousha. Now, we have a fight to begin."
Cold arched an eyebrow at his first statement, then held up a hand at the second. "Two more questions first, if you would." Zojo frowned more, but nodded. "First, if we were to defeat all of the Shitennou, you and any after you who remain, would these 'penalties' still take effect? Second, is only the warrior who fights you considered to be 'in defiance' of these laws?"
Zojo smiled at that. "The penalties are only enacted after the decreed sentence here has been carried out." he said. "Only after the issued death sentence has been fulfilled will the penalties be applied. In other words, once all trespassers are dead. As for the second question..." He slipped into a fighting stance then. He turned sideways, moved his left leg and arm forward, right arm and leg back, staff held horizontally in his right hand. "All those trespassing on this world are in defiance of the laws, and so all shall be punished."
Cold reacted quickly as Zojo charged him, easily slashing his sword through the air and deflecting the other's swing of his staff. He'd rather expected the answers he'd gotten. He was relieved by the first, it meant so long as they continued to win they wouldn't have to worry about those back in the Four Galaxies. The second one, however, he wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad one. On the one hand it put them all, him, Inferna, and all of their people, in the same boat. When he won this fight, and if they lost the next, then all of their families would be killed. An incentive to do all they could, certainly, but if subsequent penalties were more severe...
"An incentive to perhaps try and save others by sacrificing themselves, and their families." he thought, easily deflecting a second attack by Zojo and then countering with a kick to the Shitennou's chest that drove him back a hundred yards before he recovered. "Of course, on the other hand, it sounds like they have to kill everyone who is here right now so if we can get even one person back to the Four Galaxies, then even if the rest of us are killed here we may still avoid these 'penalties' of theirs."
"Impressive." Zojo said, brushing some dirt off his chest plate. "I must admit, I have trouble determining how strong a person is just by sensing their ki without concentrating closely on it. The stronger the person the longer it takes for me to sense their power out. The woman I managed to sense during our conversation but you, you I had trouble with. Still, I had not expected you to be so near my own power."
Cold raised an eyebrow at that. He'd suspected this Shitennou would be able to transform as well, to double his power as the last had done, and the man's statement had just confirmed that. At present he was slightly less than half of Cold's power, definitely not 'near' each other. He wasn't overly concerned, however. He was a skilled fighter, and he would have a slight power advantage in the battle. Beyond that, Inferna was standing by on the side-lines. If it looked as though he were about to lose she would jump in and finish the fight, as they'd agreed on weeks ago.
As he thought about all of that Zojo began to glow blue. Faintly at first, then brighter and brighter, and in less then a second he was like a blue sun fallen to the ground and Cold had to turn and shield his eyes from the glare. An instant later there was a loud crack and the glare vanished. Cold lowered his arm and took in his opponent's new look.
The armor now appeared to be slightly transparent, like it was now blue crystal instead of blue stone. The shoulders of the breast plate now flared out a few inches from his torso, and his orange eyes had turned yellow. The biggest change to his appearance, however, was the helmet. It was no longer an open face design. A large open oval remained over the eyes but the mouth was now hidden behind a blue face plate. The physical changes were, as they had been with Jikoku, rather minor. But, also as with Jikoku, the man's power had doubled.
The ground under Zojo's left foot shattered as the Shitennou pushed off and surged in at Cold. The Changeling pivoted and brought up the flat of his sword, deflecting the other's staff thrust, then lashed out and smashed his tail into the man's stomach driving him back. He turned again, bringing the sword around in a wide arc, slashing for his head. Zojo thrust his staff up jamming the end into the side of the blade knocking it off course, then twisted and thrust out the other end toward Cold's head. The Changeling dodged back and the thrust ended just short of hitting.
"Extend!" Zojo called, and suddenly the staff rocketed outward like a bullet, catching the Changeling royal off guard and slamming into his forehead, knocking him backward. He lunged forward then, in pursuit, but Cold's tail suddenly shot up and grabbed him by the ankle before pitching him off to the right. The Changeling sent an orb of purple energy after him. Zojo smacked it aside with his staff, then quickly brought it up and blocked the overhead downward slice from Cold. Cold brought his right arm up and fired another blast of energy, this one point blank into Zojo's chest. The attack exploded on impact and knocked him flying back, Cold in pursuit.
Still over twenty feet away Zojo twisted around in the air, slashing out with his staff. "Extend!" he called again, and once more the staff grew in length. Cold ducked down intending to go under the swing but Zojo's voice called out again, "Expand!" and the staff suddenly grew thicker and thicker. Now it was no longer only an inch in diameter but closer to four feet. There wasn't enough time to react and the enlarged staff slammed into Cold's left shoulder and the left side of his head knocking him aside and then down into the ground where he slid for fifty some feet gouging out a two foot deep trench as he went.
"I'd figured that staff would have special properties, considering Jikoku's swords did." he thought, shaking his head and climbing back to his feet. "But this wasn't quite what I'd expected." Reaching his feet again he saw Zojo charging at him once more, the staff again back to its original size, only an inch across and five feet in length. "Still, two can play at this game." He grinned as he sent energy down into his sword. Inferna had done well with it against Jikoku, but she didn't have the skill and discipline, or the experience, that he did with the blade.
"Death Blade!" he called as he quickly brought the sword up and did a left to right slash through the air. The sword flashed blue and then suddenly a paper thin arc of energy shot forth at the Shitennou. Zojo saw the attack coming and quickly moved up to fly over it. Then his eyes widened and he dodged to the left around a purple energy blade extending from the end of Cold's sword forty feet away. The blade caught the edge of his arm and sliced off a half inch from the left shoulder flare. At once Cold pulled his arm back and then shot in at his opponent reaching him just as the man recovered.
Zojo swiped at his head with his staff and Cold quickly brought up an arm to block while also swinging his sword at the Shitennou's head. The other copied Cold, blocking the swing with an arm, but unlike with Cold's block the weapon did not bounce off. There was a flash of blue light and the blade bit into Zojo's armor nearly an inch before the Shitennou pulled away. The Changeling pivoted in the air and thrust out his right leg slamming a large foot into the Shitennou's chest knocking him back several dozen feet.
The Shitennou twisted and thrust his staff down, jamming one end of it into the ground. Griping the staff in both hands his momentum pulled him around in a loop. He released his hold as he came around and shot toward Cold feet first, smashing both of them into the shocked Changeling's stomach a moment later. Zojo pushed off against Cold's chest, twisted in the air so that he was facing in the sky, and then back flipped slamming both feet into the royal's head, snapping it up and back. Completing his flip he landed with a soft thud and then stood up again just as Cold righted himself and stopped as well.
"Return!" Zojo said as he held his right arm out to his side. There was a flash of red from his hand and then the staff appeared back in his grasp. Then he turned on the spot, bringing the staff up as he did. Making a complete revolution he thrust his arm out throwing the staff like a spear. As Cold quickly brought his sword up, intending to deflect the projectile, the Shitennou's voice called out again. "Harden!" An instant later staff met sword with a thundering bang, the impact nearly knocking the Changeling over as he barely redirected the staff away from him. It crashed to the ground a few feet away, gouging out a hole as it continued to slide.
"Incredible. He can increase not only the length and width of the staff, but its mass and density as well." Cold thought as he recovered from his stumble. "The heavier he makes it the more effort it will take to wield, but the greater the power he can put into his attacks. I'll need to watch for that. Increasing the mass after building the momentum first, as he did with the throw, could let him hit with far greater force than he can usually muster." As the staff came to a stop it vanished and reappeared in Zojo's grasp once again. By then, however, Cold was already surging in toward him again.
On the side-lines Inferna frowned as she watched the two warriors turn into blurs of color once more. She'd barely seen any of the battle so far, the two of them were just too quick to follow. She wasn't really surprised by that, she knew how strong Cold was after all. In her first form, as she currently was, he was more than twenty-seven times stronger than her. That she could see even the blurs of their movement was more than she'd expected. It was still annoying, however. Not that there was really anything she could do about it. Even in her second form Cold would be nearly three times stronger than her, still too fast to truly follow.
"And my third form would be... overkill." she thought. Her second form was ten times stronger than her first, and her third was ten times stronger than her second. That would make her about four times stronger than Cold and Zojo, certainly able to follow the fight but not exactly a form she liked to just stand around in. It was large, heavy, bulky, and she was always tense and edgy while in that form. Not to mention that, unlike the Changelings, her people had to expend energy to maintain their transformed states.
There was an alternate solution, however, and she'd already sent some of her and Cold's people to retrieve it. One of the technologies they'd already managed to reproduce from within the shrine. They still were unsure of just how it worked, they'd only been able to create it because the process was one of the automated productions in the Fabrication Room. But knowing how and why it worked wasn't required for actually using it. Glancing behind her to check on their progress she found five of those she'd sent hurrying back with the device between them.
It wasn't much to look at. Just a large metal lump with a green crystal dome on top. She wasn't sure where the sensors were on the device, if the green crystal dome might be the entire extent of the device's sensor systems, or if there even were sensors as she understood them. All that mattered to her was that the device could observe extremely high-speed events and then play them back without any blurring, transmitting the image to the device a person behind the five with the lump was carrying. It was just a simple metal pole with a flat base at one end and a large red crystal rectangle at the other end.
She nodded to the soldiers as they set the lump down on the ground behind her then set the display device in front. A moment later she heard the faint hum of the lump starting up. The crystal began to glow and in less than thirty seconds she was watching the battle as clearly as if she were a hundred times stronger than the fighters. The two of them were twirling, spinning, swiping, slashing, stabbing, punching, kicking, dodging, and blocking in a smooth flow of motion that looked like some sort of elaborate dance.
As she watched, Zojo slipped behind Cold and took a swing at his back with his staff, but suddenly Cold brought his arms back behind his head, sword pointing down, and blocked the attack. Then he spun the sword around, brought his arms back up over his head, and turned around himself all in the same motion, and he brought the point of the blade down at the Shitennou's head. But then the Shitennou was gone, vanished in an instant just as Jikoku had done before him. Inferna felt his disorienting energy move thirty feet behind Cold just as the image on the display shifted to show likewise.
Zojo thrust his arm out and the staff extended quickly, shooting toward the Changeling, but Cold was already spinning and he caught the side of the staff with the flat of his sword and shoved it aside. The force of the re-direct knocked the Shitennou off balance and Cold charged in and caught him with a fist to the abdomen. Then suddenly the Changeling's head snapped up and back. Zojo had placed his staff under Cold's head and extended it up into his jaw. While the royal was stunned the Shitennou pounded the end of the staff into his stomach and doubled him over.
Before he could follow up with another attack Cold slammed the hilt of his sword into the Shitennou's head, knocking him a few feet to the left. The Changeling took a slash with his blade but the staff came up and blocked it. The two moved into another flurry of swings and blocks, each of them getting their weapon or an arm in the way of the other's attacks. And then Cold caught his opponent in the small of his back with his tail, driving him back a dozen yards. He quickly turned around to face him as his sword began to glow purple.
"Death Burst!" he called as the sword suddenly flashed. Inferna's eyes widened as she realized what he was doing. Out of each of the millions of pores in the blade, through which the energy he was pushing into it could exit, a stream of energy was doing just that. In an instant millions of tiny beams of energy, each one less than half a millimeter across, were surging out toward Zojo. Or, at least, in his general direction. The beams coming from closer to the tip were going straighter while those further back were going wider.
The attack would blanket at least a hundred square yards of sky by the time it reached the Shitennou. Each beam far too small to see them all, making dodging them a crapshoot. You could avoid the fifty or so beams you saw coming, but there was no way to be sure you weren't dodging right into one, two, ten, or even a hundred that you didn't see coming. The amount of skill, not just with the sword but in general, that was required for such an attack was impressive. Cold was even better than she'd thought, and she'd already known he was a better fighter than her.
Zojo apparently realized the problem as well, as once he'd recovered from the blow to his back and spotted the attack he didn't attempt to dodge. Instead, he curled up into a ball, bringing his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs, and tucking his head down. A second later thousands miniature streaks of purple energy were zipping past the Shitennou, and dozens were striking against the ki barrier he'd erected around himself. Inferna saw four flashes, ten, twenty, fifty, and then lost count as flash after flash hit the barrier. As the attack was at last ending she saw four or five of them pierce the barrier and strike the man, but they appeared to do little or no damage.
Zojo uncurled himself as the attack ended. "You are an impressive fighter." he said. "One of the most skilled I have met."
"As are you." said Cold.
"I have had millennia to practice. Still, there is something about your style... It reminds me of another I fought, long ago. Called herself Dusk, I believe. She was an impressive creature. Her skill wasn't as honed as yours is, and she fought with an unusual weapon as opposed to a sword, but the style was similar."
"Oh?" Cold said, relaxing a little. "What sort of weapon?" He wasn't all that interested in this person Zojo spoke of. Rather, he was hoping to use this conversation to segue into his other questions. His interest had been captured in the beginning by the whole 'penalty' business and, as such, he'd not had the chance to bring up his Armageddon questions then. With any luck this thread of conversation would allow him to do so now.
"The hand grip was in the center with blades coming from both sides. However the ends were not single points, but like those of a trident."
"A Dishok?" Cold wondered in surprise, eyes widening a little. "With handholds directly under the end tri-points as well?" he asked.
Zojo tilted his head up and back a little. "You know of the weapon?" he asked.
"I do." replied Cold. "The Dishok is an ancient weapon of my peoples." Now he was curious about this other person. He'd never heard of the Dishok existing among any race other than the three Changeling races. Which meant someone from his people had been here before. Had fought Zojo before. It was a fascinating possibility, especially for one who had such an interest in history as he did.
Who had this woman been? How had she gotten here? Why had Zojo not placed him or, if his theory about the Valkano was accurate, Inferna with this person? Had they been in a different transformed state at the time? And she had clearly defeated Jikoku, but Cold could remember no instances in their recorded histories where transformations had not been present. Even the oldest legends, dating back millions of years, spoke of the transformations. How could one of their people have found her way here so long ago that it pre-dated even legend?
"Do you remember what she looked like?" he asked.
"I do, which is why I had not made a connection to your people." Zojo said. "She was about a head shorter than even the orange woman, at least in the beginning. Her skin was mostly a dark blue, though there were dark red stripes encircling her arms, which were longer than average, with her wrists down by her knees. She transformed during our battle, growing spikes from her shoulders and horns on her head. She grew to twice her original height, her face became more snout like, her skin turned completely black, and solid white bone armor formed over everything but her face and hands."
Cold blinked several times as he stared at Zojo, unable to believe his ears. "How is that possible?" he wondered. "How could one of them have come here? Our records say they never left our world..." He shook that off and returned his attention to the present, and to the questions the man before him might be able to answer. "She would definitely have been one of ours, then." he said. "What happened to her?"
"I do not know." Zojo replied with a shake of his head. "She and I fought, and I was winning until she transformed. But after she did she had me at a... severe disadvantage. Even after I myself transformed. She is the only one to have ever defeated me. In the time between my defeat and Komoku's awakening she vanished. The decreed sentence was not carried out, also a first."
"Interesting. Very interesting indeed." Cold mused. "That explains why no record exists of transformations being lost, then. She escaped. And Komoku would be our next Shitennou, I expect. Still, I wonder what happened to this Dusk?"
Cold turned his focus back to Zojo again. "How long ago was this?"
Zojo shrugged. "You are the first I've fought since her." he said. "But more than that I can't say. We are only vaguely aware of the passage of time while we sleep and I don't yet know what has past within the Four Galaxies."
"Ah, right. You don't check until after a win." said Cold, remembering what Jikoku had said. And then he thought of a way to segue the conversation into the coming Armageddon. "When you check on the Four Galaxies, do you compare what you see in them to the prophecy written on the walls inside the shrine?"
"No." replied Zojo. "Not any more, at least. We are beyond the point of prophecy that we Shitennou can read. Though we do know of the foreseen Armageddon and we look to see if it has begun yet."
Cold found that interesting. "You can only read a portion of the prophecy?" he asked. "Considering it was written by the natives of this world I would have figured you could read it all."
Zojo shook his head. "We can read only the language that Souzousha gave us. That language changed and evolved over time, became something new that we are unable to read." Zojo cocked his head slightly and looked thoughtful. "What makes you ask?"
"I was curious how far back along the wall Dusk's visit would have been. I thought perhaps it would give an idea of how long ago she'd been here." he answered, then shrugged. "But I'll save you some time, assuming you get lucky enough to defeat me and a find a miracle to defeat Inferna. The predicted Armageddon is close."
"Oh? And what makes you so sure of that?"
Cold smiled. "And The False Gods shall then come through a union of powers, the Horned and the Newly Tailless, and they shall seize the universe and lead it to the End of Days." he said. "I have horns, as did my sons when we first met the Sai-jins. As for the Sai-jins, a little over half a century ago we met them, and allied with them, and they had only just lost their tails. Since then we, along with other allies, have conquered the north, east, and west galaxies. More recently Inferna over there, the Queen of the entire South Galaxy, joined us, giving us control of all four galaxies. The entire universe. There are also a few other titles I can link to people or groups."
Zojo seemed to contemplate that for a moment, then nodded. "So it would seem the end of this universe is soon to arrive." he said.
"Without fail?" asked Cold. "That's what I want to know. Can this predicted Armageddon be avoided?"
"Oh, of course." Zojo said. "The fate of the universe is in the hands of those who live within it. The chance of the end being prevented, however, is very slim indeed. Of course, even after the end comes it is not the end forever. The universe will be erased and a new one will take its place."
"But this battle can be avoided?" asked Cold.
"Yes."
"How?"
Zojo shrugged. "None of this really matters for you. You are here, not in the Four Galaxies. There is nothing you can do to influence the universe."
"For now, but we don't intend to stay here forever." said Cold. "And even if you think we are stuck here, indulge me. Think of it as a... last request."
Zojo smirked. "Very well. I am an honorable man, I shall grant your last request. There are five points pivotal to the foreseen Armageddon. At those five points, and those five points only, can the course of the universe be re-directed. The first is if The Evil defeats The False Gods with which it does battle. If they fall then The Evil will rampage through the Four Galaxies, killing the still sleeping Herald of Destruction along the way, before being contained again. As a result of the rampage the stages will descend."
"The Evil..." Cold mused. "That's one I believe I've identified. If I'm right, it's the creature that Kakkarotto fought and defeated shortly before we came here."
"Oh?" Zojo asked, raising his eyebrows. "So, the first point has already been past? We are further along than I had expected. Well then, on to the next point. The second point is if The Harbinger's death is prevented. If The Harbinger does not die then the first of the Angels of Death will not be awakened. As a result the Herald of Destruction will rampage and reset the stages. Have you identified The Harbinger?"
"No." said Cold, shaking his head. "There was far too little about them in the prophecy for me to place them. It indicates only that they will die and 'summon' the Herald of Destruction. Not enough to work off of before their death."
"Which would imply they have not yet died."
"Buu was defeated less than a day before we arrived here. This 'Harbinger' may have died since then." said Cold, frowning. "I'm not sure how long we've been here, exactly, or how that compares to the passage of time back in the Four Galaxies, or what's happened there during our time here."
Zojo nodded. "Very well then, on to the next. The third point is the awakening of the second Angel of Death. If his awakening can be prevented, by any means at all, then The Chosen will succeed in their goal and, as a result, will reset the stages. The fourth point involves The Exiles. If The Exiles do not free The Fallen One then the Archangel will not awaken and as the ongoing battles continue the stages will be able to descend.
"Finally, the last point is the Archangel. Even if The Fallen One is freed, if the Archangel's awakening is prevented, by any means, then Armageddon will be avoided as The Fallen One eliminates the strongest fighters in the universe, thusly resetting the stages to a much lower point. Those are the only times Armageddon can be avoided. Once the Archangel awakes the stages will be exceeded and Armageddon will be set in motion. At that point it is unavoidable."
"It looks like I will need to spend more time contemplating the prophecy and who these titles may refer to." said Cold.
"If you wish to stop Armageddon, yes. However, before that you must leave here, which is unlikely. And before you can even attempt that we have a battle to finish."
Cold nodded. "That we do." he said. He still had a few questions but, for now, they could wait. Inferna could ask the next of the Shitennou about the heroes and the monster they had defeated. He could tell Zojo wouldn't answer any more questions anyway. The look in his eyes clearly said his only interest now was in concluding their battle. Likely he wanted to look in on the Four Galaxies and see if he could make the connections that Cold had not yet made himself.
The two lunged at each other, Cold raising his sword as he flew and Zojo thrusting out with his staff. There was a clang a second later as Cold blocked the staff with his sword, then spun and smashed his tail into the back of the Shitennou's head. Zojo stumbled forward but countered even while off balance. He thrust his staff back and slammed the end of it into Cold's side, knocking him down. Twisting around the Shitennou leaped into the air over the prone Changeling and aimed the base of his staff down at the ground.
"Pulverize!" he called as the staff suddenly expanded, growing to five feet in diameter, and then extended downward toward the ground thirty feet below. Cold saw it coming and quickly back flipped away, getting out from under it a second before it slammed into the ground with a thunderous crash. As it came back out the Changeling royal scowled at the five foot wide and three foot deep hole that had been formed. It was clearly time for him to put an end to this fight before Zojo did. He launched up into the air at his opponent, drew his sword back, and then slashed out with it just as the staff returned to normal.
Zojo vanished just before the slice would have connected and Cold grinned as he now felt the Shitennou's energy about twenty feet behind him. He'd noted it first in Inferna's fight, and then during his own. Their opponent's could teleport but they appeared to have a span of time after doing it once where they couldn't do it again. Now that Zojo had just done so again he wouldn't be able to for a while, which meant it was time to set up the killing blow.
Turning around he saw that Zojo was already attacking, staff thrust out and growing toward him. Dodging to the side he grabbed the staff in his free hand as it reached him, then quickly turned and jerked to the left. As he'd hoped the Shitennou kept a firm hold on the weapon and Cold used it to slam him down into the ground. His other arm then pulled back and pitched forward as he threw his sword, point first, at the downed man. Even as the sword was still surging through the air he released his hold on the staff, raised his right arm up over his head, and extend his index and middle fingers.
The sword was still only half way to the ground when a spark of purple and orange energy ignited over his finger tips and quickly began swelling in size. Below Zojo rolled to the side, avoiding the blade which buried itself in the ground up to its hilt. No matter, he hadn't expected it to hit, it had only been a diversion. Much like the energy currently floating over his head. "Death Ball!" he called, bringing his arm down and sending the already thirty foot wide mass of energy down toward his target.
Now was the tricky part, he knew, as he chased his attack down toward the ground making sure to stay hidden out of sight behind the energy ball. Zojo had already confessed his difficulty with sensing powers and Cold was gambling that the man wouldn't notice him following the attack down. If the man noticed him then his plan probably wouldn't work, the Shitennou would be ready for him. He grinned to himself a moment later, however, as Zojo caught the Death Ball, clearly unaware of his presence on the other side. Cold pulled to a stop just beyond the edge of the energy mass, extended his right arm, and pointed his index and middle fingers toward where he could sense Zojo.
"Death Beam!"
There was a flash of purple as the energy erupted from his finger tips, then deafening roar and blinding burst of red as the Death Ball, having been pierced by the Death Beam, exploded. The blast knocked Cold hurting into the sky nearly five dozen yards before he managed to regain control. Looking below him he could see nothing through the dust cloud and he sent a ki burst down to blow it away. A crater had formed nearly fifty yards across and at its center lay Zojo, armor cracked in a dozen places, blue energy sparking wildly around his body, and a small hole, no more than an inch across, in his chest. The Death Beam had connected.
Letting out a breath Cold floated down toward him. "I would say that decides the match." he said, landing a couple feet away from Zojo.
"That... it does." the Shitennou said. "But... this will... be your last... victory. None have... ever defeated... Komoku."
"Well, based on what you've said before, none have ever fought him, either." said Cold. "Makes it hard for someone to defeat him."
Zojo laughed. "I suppose... you have a... point. But... Komoku is... Third Stage. You are... only... second." The blue sparks of energy around him had grown in number, frequency, and intensity as he spoke. Then his eyes themselves began to glow blue. There was a sudden flash of light, a thundering explosion, and when the glare and dust faded all that remained were a few shards of clear blue crystal, a scorch mark on the ground where he'd lain, and a floating ball of blue light. The light pulsed and surged off toward the shrine, up the stairs, through the door, and out of sight.
"Well, looks like we're in the clear again for a while." Inferna said, walking down to join Cold in the crater. "Shall we return to your ship and see how the data transfer is progressing?"
Cold nodded and followed her back up.