The Grand Kai had settled into his seat at the Otherworld tournament arena again. He'd been right about the previous day's matches. They had all been disappointingly boring and short. There were two matches coming up today, however, that he was most interested in watching. The first fight would be Appla against Olibu, a promising match indeed. And the last match of the day would be Bardock and Pikkon. Then he would see for certain how much the Sai-jins had improved. Of course, before that would be the tournament in the Mortal Plane.
He had also asked the Supreme Kai and her apprentice to stay and witness the day's events. She had, at first, refused his invitation, stating that she needed to monitor events in Otherworld. He had managed to convince her to remain for the tournament by reminding her that if something was coming then it would be the mortals fighting in the tournament that would be standing against it. What better way to assess their chances than to witness them in battle?
Though, admittedly, the match-ups today for the tournament in the Mortal Plane didn't look to be nearly as exciting as those of the day before. Still, it would be better than nothing. So that's how it came to be that he had Mikomi, Kai of all Kais, sitting on his right hand side today with the other lower Kais now all on his left side. Kibito stood behind them, between his seat and hers.
"The day's events should be getting underway shortly." the Grand Kai said. "The match-ups today are a lot more un-even than they were yesterday. I doubt the fights will last very long this time. You may not get to fully experience or appreciate their powers today." Mikomi gave a slight nod to show she'd heard him, even though her mind was currently spread out through out the realm looking for some sign of anything amiss.
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Galactic Games Arena, Competitors Area
The children had been keeping their eyes peeled since leaving the palace looking for any signs of anything off or wrong. So far they hadn't seen anything and the tournament was already about to get underway again. It had taken a good deal of coaxing from Vegeta to keep the tournament going in the first place, and to stop the spectators from boarding the first shuttles home.
Not that several hundred hadn't already left with more preparing to later that day. Even though very few of them had been hurt, most of the injuries and all of the casualties being arena staff, a lot of people didn't like the fact that Kuriiza and Nova had been left to fight on the grounds. They considered that, and Nova's continued presence, a serious lapse in judgment and security.
Even so, there were more who had remained behind than had gone. In fact, the stands were just as packed today as they had been yesterday. Those who'd vacated their seats had been replaced by those who had come to the planet but hadn't managed to secure seats before the tickets had sold out. So it seemed, at least on the surface and at first glance, that no lasting damage had been done. But only time would tell for sure.
"Well, see you guys in a few minutes." Cheri said waving to them as she walked out into the Battle Pit with her opponent, Eskarga. After walking out a good distance the two fighters came to a stop and faced each other. Cheri wasn't particularly sure what to expect since she hadn't paid any attention to the first match the previous day. But she wasn't expecting any problems, she was four times stronger than this guy.
The match was called to a start and she lunged in at him. As she did his arms lanced out toward her and began to stretch catching her by surprise. She moved to the right to dodge around them and they swerved toward her. She went left and they followed, now almost on top of her. She stopped then and waited until they were closer and then, at the last second, shot up over them.
Turning to face down at the Namek now she was about to charge him again when she felt a pair of hands grab her ankles. Before she had time to react the Namek's arms snapped like whips and she was smashed into the ground before they retracted drawing her to him. Her head was only just beginning to clear from the sudden and unexpected impact with the ground when she felt his arms coil around her like snakes pinning her arms to her sides.
Opening her eyes again she found herself only a foot away from the Namek and bound tightly by his arms. She frowned and started to flex her arms to break free when she felt his hands grab the sides of her head and then felt the most unusual and uncomfortable sensation she'd ever felt. It wasn't painful at all but it felt bizarre and made her feel like she'd been crammed into a space ten sizes too small for her for the last few hours.
She also felt her power waning. /What... is this?/ she wondered, struggling to keep her power together so she could break free. Then she felt her eyes starting to droop and the edges of her vision blurred. /My energy. He must be... draining it somehow.../ she realized. /I have to... get free.../ "Sanjuu... Kinryoku!" she cried, silver light flaring up around her body.
That's when she realized how much power she'd already lost. Even with the Kinryoku her power was still below its normal maximum. Which left only one recourse. Gritting her teeth she called out "Kaio ken!" and in a burst of red threw her arms out to her sides and ripped her way free of Eskarga's grasp. The Namek stumbled back but soon recovered and then sprouted a new pair of arms.
Cheri surged in at him again and this time reached him before he had a chance to do anything, only having just regrown his limbs. Reaching him she slammed a fist into his stomach, then another and another in rapid fire succession, driving him back a few feet. She pulled back a little to launch a spinning kick at his face but suddenly her vision went black. And then she felt the hand gripping her face followed by the same sensation as before.
Once again her energy was being siphoned off. Only this time she couldn't power-up further to break free as she had done before. Scrunching up her face under the Namek's palm she thought quickly and an idea came to her. She was suddenly very grateful her arms were free and quickly brought her hands up to either side of her face, fingers spread. "Solar Flare!" her voice yelled, muffled by the hand.
Suddenly a blinding flash of light filled the battle pit and the monitors displaying the match. The glare turned Eskarga's vision solid white and the intensity of it made his eyes feel like they were on fire. He released the child and stumbled backward out of reflex, covering his eyes with his hands and trying to rub the light out of them.
Cheri was panting lightly as she landed on the ground and took a few steps back. She'd never heard of a Namek that could absorb energy before. /Damn it, my power's dropped off a lot now! I'm usually stronger than this in base. Damn. I was hoping to save this for later but it looks like I don't have any choice in the matter. And then it's straight for the win, I am so not giving him the chance to steal more energy!/
With these thoughts running through her head she let the Kaio Ken and Kinryoku fade as she lifted a few inches into the air and surged backward putting fifty yards between her and Eskarga. Landing again she reached down and undid the belt around her waist letting it fall to the ground. Then she reached down and removed her shoes, tossing them aside. She was now very happy she'd pulled on her green body suit before her gi when she'd changed for the tournament. Otherwise she wouldn't be doing this, simply to avoid being naked in front of all these people.
Then she hunched over and clenched her hands into fists. As she let out a scream her blue aura flared up around her blowing her hair up into the air. The dust and dirt around her began to lift into the air and swirl around as her tail swished back and forth. And then her eyes turned pure white as her pupils vanished and she threw her head back, her scream intensifying.
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Galactic Games Arena, Competitors Area
"I doubt the matches today will be all that interesting." Yamcha said as he leaned back against the wall. "I don't think we'll have any more good fights until Videl and Gohan fight in the next round, and then Gohan and Vegeta in the semi-finals. And that's it. That Tatamo guy is powerful but there's no way he can beat Piccolo."
"I thought you were fighting Tatamo this round?" Hotaru asked.
Yamcha winced. "Don't remind me. After what he did to Mijima I'm thinking of just forfeiting. It's not worth the pain and humiliation." His eyes followed Cheri and Eskarga as they made their way out into the battle pit. "I'm looking forward to Cheri's match against him, though. She can't win, no way in hell, but it'll be interesting to see how strong she is."
"I'm not expecting anything quite as jaw dropping as what Goten and Trunks did, or Akemi for that matter, but I'm looking forward to it too." said Hotaru. "I think Vegeta is as well, both of them. And it's understandable. If she inherited Tien's ability and isn't a reduced capacity..."
Yamcha nodded. "Yeah. I've wondered a few times, since learning about the Sai-jins, what kind of power Tien would have were he one of them, just because of how much he's got as Human. I think, as a Sai-jin, he'd be even stronger than Gohan. Probably could have kept ahead of Goku even."
Out in the ring Cheri had just broken free of Eskarga's grasp. They watched the monitors as she began her assault. And then he had hold of her again. "Man, I'd still like to know how he can do that." Yamcha said as he watched the power reading for Cheri go down as Eskarga's went up.
It had shocked everyone, even Piccolo, when the Namek had absorbed Dubibub's energy blast the previous day and then fired it back at him. Even the powerful Namek didn't know how Eskarga could absorb energy. It wasn't exactly a standard option for Nameks. Yamcha turned his eyes away from the monitors as light flared up from them. When he looked back Cheri was just hunching over and beginning her scream.
As she threw her head back he heard gasps come from Vadora, Raditz, and Senator Vegeta. "Is she... doing what I think she is?" Vadora asked, the shock evident in her voice.
"I... think she is." the elder Vegeta said slowly.
"But..." Raditz began. "How is that... possible!?"
On the screen Cheri's aura had flared up even larger now. It looked like a spot light had been placed under her and was shining up into the sky. The ground shook and cracked as brown fur began to grow on her hands and face. Her swishing tail grew thicker and longer as her body swelled in size. Within seconds her gi tore as she out grew it, the green body suit expanding with her.
Her solid white eyes shifted to red as her height reached ten feet. Her face stretched, a large snout forming by the time she hit twenty feet. She was completely covered in fur by thirty feet. By the time she reached forty feet Eskarga's vision had cleared and he was looking up at her towering and still growing form in shock. Finally she came to a stop just short of fifty feet, her massive head looking down, her large eyes locking onto the Namek.
"No more games!" her voice boomed, several tones deeper than normal. "Sanjuu Kinryoku!" Once again silver flared around her and her already increased power climbed even higher. And then she threw a punch down at the ground, Eskarga still too shocked to move. The blow landed with a ground shaking crash and as she lifted her hand back up she revealed the Namek laying unconscious in a large crater.
Cheri stood there watching him, her tail swishing behind her, until the count finished. And then, with a loud roar, she threw head and arms back again. The silver aura vanished as the blue one returned. Her muscles pulsed and rippled as the red of her eyes faded to pink and then white. And then the hair began to recede and her body to shrink.
"That's unbelievable..." Vadora said, still in disbelief. "How can she... how can she turn into an Oozaru and back at will?" A few moments later Cheri walked back into the room smiling and carrying what was left of her gi, her belt once again tied around her waist covering her tail. "Cheri..." Vadora started as she approached.
The girl grinned more and scratched the back of her head. "Cool, huh?"
Yamcha looked over to Tatamo who was just about to head out to the battle pit. "Um, hey... uh, Tatamo, right?" he asked. The Sai-jin nodded. "Well, I'm just... gonna forfeit." he said, scratching the back of his head. Tatamo shrugged and then vanished. "And there he goes again, geez."
None of the other matches that day were as interesting as the first. Piccolo, as no nonsense as ever, knocked Akemi out before the girl could even transform. Being married didn't stop Tien from one hit K.O.ing Vadora either. Kavar, too, was down within seconds. Gainin managed a single punch to Gohan's stomach just as the hybrid transformed, and then the Cyborg was out cold.
Sakura made a good bid for her match, transforming and shooting to her full power as she charged at Senator Vegeta. But the elder Sai-jin was ready for her and knocked her out before she reached him. Raditz, too, had jumped to his full power upon charging the younger Vegeta. But that wasn't nearly enough against a Super Sai-jin of his level and he was down in seconds as well. In fact, the last seven matches took as long, together, as the entire first match.
Needless to say the spectators weren't particularly satisfied.
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Otherworld, Grand Kai's World, Otherworld Stadium
"Well, I was worried about that." the Grand Kai said with a sigh. "You should come back tomorrow Mikomi. Videl and Gohan's match is then. With that you'll see just what I was talking about, they're two of the strongest."
Mikomi nodded. "Thank-you, Zenryou." she said nodding. "I think I will come to see that battle. These mortals have me intrigued."
"If you think they're good just wait until you see the three here in action." King Kai said, leaning forward in his seat and smiling. "I can't wait to see how much they've all improved."
The West Kai snorted. "Pikkon's still going to win. Just like he did seven years ago."
Now it was King Kai's turn to snort. "Pikkon only barely won last time!" he said. "And you've seen how strong Vegeta is now, there's no way he's passed up Goku and Bardock! Pikkon doesn't stand a chance!"
Mikomi smiled as the two lower Kai's traded taunts while the second round of the Otherworld Tournament was called to a start, the first match of the day being Appla Vs. Olibu. The two dead warriors stepped into the ring to cheers from the crowd. King Kai was looking forward to these matches, they'd be more entertaining than the ones in the Mortal Plane had been.