Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any part of the Dragon Ball franchise. If I did I'd be really awesome.
Chapter 8 - Devil Castle
It was the weirdest thing that Goku ever saw. It was like there was a tear in the very air. The surface of the portal shimmered, reflecting the lights off it. It was big enough for someone like Susha to walk through and had jagged edges, but otherwise; it didn't reveal what lay behind it.
"Okay, here goes nothing," said Goku as he stepped through and the world changed. A dark purple replaced the sunny blue sky one with pink and green clouds covering it and a red full moon peeking through those clouds. It was certainly beautiful if it wasn't so sinister looking. The river that was behind the portal was nowhere to be found, and instead, there were barren rocky lands that extended upwards into a cliff with a medieval-looking grand castle resting on top of it.
The cliff seemed to lead off to a fall into pure darkness as nothing could be seen of what awaited the unfortunate soul that fell off. To the left side of the cliff was a small forest composed of twisted trees with black barks and colourful leaves. There was a faint veil of fog that settled around the area, and a smell of sulfur and other unpleasantness hung in the air.
All in all, it wasn't a nice place to be in, and it was a wonder how anyone could live here in the first place.
"This place sucks," said Krillin, as he eyed his surroundings warily.
Goku nodded, his nose wrinkling from the smell thanks to his enhanced scenes as a Saiyan. "Yeah, I don't want to be here for long."
"So, where to go first?"
Goku pointed at the castle. "That seems like a good place to start."
"Yeah, but there are those who are working in the mines. I doubt the mines are inside the castle, and there is nothing on the right side, leaving whatever lay in that creepy forest."
"That makes sense," agreed Goku.
"Maybe we should split up?" Krillin shook his head at the suggestion.
"No, we do not know what we're going to face here, so it's better to stay together for now."
Goku could see the merit in the suggestion, especially not knowing the level of enemies that they had to deal with here, after those two demons that they fought. Not to mention any strange ability that those demons might possess.
Krillin sighed in relief. "So, creepy forest first, then murder castle later."
And thus, they started their walk through the forest. They could've flown, but they'd have missed anything happening inside the forest itself as the overgrown twisted trees, tangled roots and lack of light would've made it extremely hard to see through it from above, so walking was their best option.
The forest proved even creepier than it was from the outside with moving shadows and creepy sounds and Goku could've sworn he saw the trees move. It was a nerve-wracking experience walking through it, having to avoid the roots that seemed to move to trip them, and being wary of any possible attack from unknown enemies.
It took an hour of walking before they saw the first sign of life that wasn't their imagination giving life to the trees. It was a pair of tigers, though unlike anything they'd ever seen. They were much bigger, with green fur with white stripes with black outlines covering their bodies, and they had three pairs of limbs instead of two with two long fangs extending from the upper part of their jaw to below the lower part by at least a foot.
"Great… demon tigers," muttered Krillin unhappily.
Goku's response, however, was different. "I wonder if their meat tastes as good as regular ones," he said as the tigers noticed them and growled before bouncing at them.
Both he and Krillin easily dodged. "Is food all you can think of? And don't you dare eat them. They might be poisonous!" Both of them fired a Ki blast that destroyed the head of each tiger, taking care of them in a moment before they even landed.
"I don't think that Saiyans get poisoned."
The encounter at least proved that they were things living in the forest, though nothing too dangerous so far.
"Really? You guys are just full of hax. Just don't test now."
Goku pouted, but he could see the reasoning, seeing that they were in enemy territory with unknown numbers of opponents for them to face. They continued walking for another hour, encountering all kinds of demonic animals like an eagle with two pairs of wings, three-headed wolves… etc but they all proved easy to defeat though there was a feeling of being watched that persisted all the while, and no matter where they looked, they couldn't tell who or what was watching them and from where.
Their first encounter with any demon was about half an hour later than that. Goku and Krillin saw two humanoid-looking guys wearing nothing but pants with muscular bodies, and blue and red coloured skin and each of them had a pair of horns. Otherwise, they looked human enough.
They were talking about some kind of exercise when Goku and Krillin stumbled upon them. The two of them decided to trail them discreetly, and they did just that for about five minutes before Goku stepped on a small twig and broke it.
"Ops."
The two demons heard the noise and turned around to see both Goku and Krillin facing them.
"You two! What are two humans like you doing so far outside of the mines? Who is your handler?!" one of the demons, the red-skinned one, shouted at them.
"Ah, sorry, sir!" said Krillin, bowing to the demon. "We were on our way to the bathroom and got lost. Can you tell us in which direction the mines are?" The blue one nodded.
"Sure, just continue in the direction we were going towards."
"I see. Thank you for your help, sir!" exclaimed Krillin childishly before he took a stance. "Now it's time for you to sleep… permanently."
Goku was confused at that. "I thought we were going to kill them." Making Krillin facepalm.
"We are Goku."
"Then why did you…" a light bulb lit up in Goku's mind. "Ah, this is what they call a 'figure of speech', then?"
"Exactly, Goku!"
The red demon growled. "Ah, I see, we have two jokers here. It seems that we need to teach them a lesson, eh, Vladimir?"
The blue one looked stupidly at his partner. "I don't understand, why is sleeping so bad, Dmitry?" The red one facepalmed.
"I'll explain to you what they mean later. Now, let's beat them up."
The blue one still looked confused, but he shrugged and got into a stance. Krillin and Goku didn't give them any time to attack, however, Krillin jumped, sending a kick at the blue demon. He tried to block, but the attack was too strong as his arm broke under the strength of the kick. He hollowed in pain, but Krillin didn't give him any more time to react before he sent a Ki blast that left a hole open through the demon's chest. The demon fell uselessly to the ground, never to stand up again.
Goku wasn't far behind as he ended his own opponent with one punch that went through his chest, tearing his heart apart, and killing him. "Well, that was easy."
"Yeah." Nodded Krillin. "Hopefully the others are just as easy to deal with as these two morons." Now with a known destination in mind, they both traversed the forest moving towards the mine with more confidence.
There was no other demon encounter until about twenty minutes later, they found themselves at a clearing near the foot of a mountain made of pitch-black rocks. There was what looked like an entrance to a cave with two demons guarding it that resembled the two from before.
"You think this is the entrance to the mine?"
Shrugged Krillin, walking forward. "Only way to find out." He then waved to the demons. "Hey, is that the entrance to the mines?"
The demons looked confused for a moment before nodding dumbly. "Thanks!"
Exclaimed Krillin before he fired a Ki blast that took one of them out. Goku followed, using his Power Pole. He commanded it to extend before he swung it sideways, hitting the other's head, and sending him flying with a broken neck. Both of them proceeded through the entrance of the mine. The walls inside were even darker than the mountain outside, and the only source of light was torches that burned with a green fire that added a creepy and eerie atmosphere to the mines.
They went deeper and deeper, encountering the occasional demon and easily beating them out. The air was getting thinner and with more of the foul smell that it was becoming harder to breathe for them. Half an hour later, they reached a bigger opening in the cave where they encountered their first humans since they set foot in this weird place.
They hid behind a small rock formation as they watched tired and injured men in rags working non-stop, using their pickaxes for whatever the demons wanted to find. There was only one demon here that looked far different and more important looking than the ones they'd encountered so far.
The demon was large, about five times the size of Goku. He was a purple-furred anthropomorphic creature with a head that resembled that of a boar. He wore a traditional-looking Chinese armour with a scimitar strapped on his hip and a whip in one of his hands which he used on one of the workers.
"Faster you maggot! Lord Lucifer wants more of those blood rubies! If I'm not satisfied with your haul, you won't be eating or sleeping for a week!"
Goku frowned, already hating the demon. He was terrible, obviously abusing the workers and hurting them, but to go as far as to forbid them from eating for a week? That was the highest possible crime in Goku's mind.
"How do you want to do it?" Krillin whispered from beside him. "I'll take on the boss demon," Goku growled, casting a hateful stare at the boar. "You get the workers outside and back to the portal safely. We can meet again there."
Krillin nodded. "Alright, sounds like a plan, but be careful."
"You too." With that said, Goku jumped out from their hiding place. "Hey! You big ugly fat demon!" he called out to gain his attention. He knew he needed to distract him and lead him further down the caves so Krillin could lead the workers out and rescue them. There was a stunned silence for a moment as everyone stood in their place.
The demon boar-man growled, taking a step menacingly. "Are you talking with me? The great Lord Yao!?"
"Who else has such an ugly mug?" Goku said and turned around, pulled down his pants and spanked his own butt. "Come and get me you boar-faced moron!" before he jumped over Yao and went deeper into the mine.
A vein burst on Yao's forehead. "I'LL KILL YOU FUCKER!" His angry bellow echoed through the cavern as he gave chase, forgetting all about the prisoners with him.
-]||[-
Krillin watched Goku go deeper into the cave for a moment longer before he decided it was time to do his part. He stepped out of his hiding place and moved toward the still-stunned prisoners. "Hey! Don't stop gawking around now!" That seemed to grab their attention as they looked at him in shock.
One man, a middle-aged man with black hair, greying at the sides. "Who are you? How did you get here? And are you with the other kid?"
"I'm Krillin and yeah, I'm with Goku," he said, frowning as he took in the sorry state of the prisoners. He could even see a body or two that weren't moving at all, and it was easy to figure out their problem with the lack of Ki, not even the minuscule amount that each human had. "How did I get here is not important! We better move now while Goku is distracting the big guy."
"You expect us to leave that little kid alone and escape?" A younger man asked.
"Not to mention the guards outside!" another said.
"Yes, we need to leave Goku. He can take care of himself," said Krillin, getting irritated by their hesitation. He trusted Goku, but that didn't mean that he wasn't worried about his best friend.
"And how do you think I got inside? We took care of the guards already." The first man scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "As if we'd believe that a couple of kids could do anything at all. We won't risk our families for your delusions, kid."
Krillin gritted his teeth in anger. While he could understand where the man was coming from, Goku was risking his life for their sake while these morons sat on their asses. Krillin raised a hand to the said, a ball of golden Ki forming before he launched it at the rock formation that they were using to hide. The Ki blast vaporised the rocks completely, making the men take a step back, looking at him in shock. Krillin crossed his arms over his chest, a smug look on his face.
"You were saying? Now, get your asses moving before I decide to leave you here. Your families are worried about you!" That got them moving as they picked up their pickaxes as weapons and started following him out of the mine.
As they walked, Krillin talked with one of the younger men and asked a few questions.
Apparently, they were brought here to search for a special kind of rubies called 'the blood rubies'. Originally, there were even more men than those he found, but they have died from the harsh conditions and starvation. Evidently, one of them has overheard that was the point and that the blood rubies got stronger by human sacrifice, but they couldn't do anything about it since they were powerless to fight the demons and their families back in the village were being held hostage.
It all served to stroke Krillin's anger at the demons. He swore that he'll do everything in his power to free those people from them. He realised that this was one of the purposes why Master Roshi has taught them their martial arts.
It went smoothly until they exited the cave since Krillin and Goku had already taken care of the guards that they saw. Things went south only just before they entered the forest.
It was only on instinct, feeling someone's malice directed at him, which allowed Krillin to dodge the attack that came from behind, though he still suffered a large, nasty gash on his side.
"Aggh!" Krillin cried out in pain as he looked at his attacker, who was now in front of him.
His attacker looked like an anthropomorphic bird warrior demon with white feathers, a red comb, and a golden beak. "Ha! You managed to avoid Torga's Drill Peck attack! Impressive."
Krillin clutched his side, gritting his teeth. "How did you sneak up on me? I only sensed you when you attacked."
"Hahaha! Torga knew about you guys since you were in the forest! Torga told Lord Yao about you, and we waited for you in the mines," Torga said before he shapeshifted into one of the men, the one who talked about the guards before he shifted back.
"Torga used his power to sneak in and wait to see what you guys were planning to do, so Torga followed you out while Lord Yao dealt with the monkey boy!"
"I see, so you were the one watching us in the forest." Then Krillin turned, glaring at the men behind him. "You knew about this?!" The men took a step back, looking down in shame.
"They threatened our families!" Krillin sighed and turned to face his enemy.
"Just get back so you don't get caught in this," he said before he took his stance, ready to face the chicken demon.
-]||[-
Goku jumped, avoiding a purple-coloured Ki blast that exploded, creating a small crater, and continued running deeper into the mine. He wanted to put a good distance between them and Krillin's group in case of any mishap.
"Stop running and jumping around you damn monkey!" Yao shouted at him from behind. The demonic boar was fast, but not fast enough to catch up with Goku.
"It's your fat butt fault that you can't catch me!" taunted Goku as he side-stepped another blast. He found himself enjoying making fun of his opponent. He continued like this for a few more minutes before the tunnel widened into a massive room that was suitable for a fight. He stopped and turned around to face his opponent. Neither of them was even sweating after all the running, and each took their stance, readying for the fight.
"I see that you finally stopped you, little bastard," growled Yao, before he smirked. "Finally realised how hopeless it is and ready to die?"
Goku snorted. "As if. I'll be beating your ass, then follow Krillin. I just wanted to give the prisoners a chance to escape."
Lord Yao seemed to finally realise what Goku's plan was. "Wait!? You were trying to separate me from the maggots?" he facepalmed at his own stupidity. "And I fell for it!" he then shook his head, smirking smugly at Goku. "It's no matter, however. My loyal subordinate, Torga, will take care of your bald friend."
So there was another demon then? I'll have to trust that Krillin can take care of him.
"Krillin can take care of himself. My job is to beat you, and that's what I'll do, while Krillin will save those prisoners regardless of whatever demon goon you have."
"We shall see, runt," Lord Yao said before he launched another Ki blast. Goku swiftly dodged before he dashed forward, brandishing his Power Pole.
"Extend!" he yelled as he swung it at Yao, who used his sword to block the staff.
"Interesting staff you have there. I'll make sure it won't get to waste after I take it from you." Goku ended the clash.
"You've got to take it out of your ass first!"
"Why you!" Lord Yao growled, but he was distracted enough that Goku scored a solid hit in the demon's stomach, making him cough up saliva and swiftly followed by an upward flick that nailed him right in the chin, making him cough up some green blood as he accidentally bit his tongue.
Goku's face scrunched in disgust. "Yuck! What's with your blood? Do you like, have vomit in your veins or something?" His Power Pole was back to its original length.
"I'll hack you apart, boy!" Yao yelled and rushed at Goku with much more speed than he expected. Yao was upon him in a moment, his sword raised high, before he brought it down on Goku. Goku raised his staff above his head, using both of his hands to hold it as he blocked the overhead strike. Yao proved surprisingly strong as Goku's arm strained under the pressure before he ended the exchange, side-stepping as Yao's momentum continued, but Yao proved a good fighter as he managed to turn the direction of his strike sideways before the sword struck the ground.
Goku managed to manoeuvre the Power Pole to block the strike, but in his position and the strength of Yao's swing sent him a few feet backwards. Lord Yao didn't give Goku any time to get his bearings as he rushed at him, sending a storm of swings and slashes at Goku at a breakneck speed. Goku, however, danced around the attacks or used his trusty Power Poll to block or deflect them.
"Stand still you little bastard!" Goku rolled his eyes as he ducked under a swing.
"Maybe I should impale myself on your sword too?" he mocked as he smacked Lord Yao's shoulder with his Power Poll. Yao growled and increased the intensity of his attacks, making it harder for Goku to dodge or block.
It continued on for a few more moments before a glint caught Goku's attention from the corner of his eye. He only had a moment to register another sword before it was upon him. He successfully blocked it with his Power Poll, but it sent the staff flying away, leaving him unarmed. He didn't get the time to react as vines suddenly appeared, wrapped around his body, restricting the movements of his upper body completely. He followed the vines down to the arm connected to it. Yao's arm that was unarmed a while ago.
Yao noticed his gaze. "Hahaha! Surprised? I can transform my arms into anything I want!"
Ah, so that's where the second sword came from. Thought Goku.
Yao continued. "Now I'm going to squeeze you to death! You can't do anything or fire a Ki blast without your arms!" he yelled before he started squeezing Goku's body hard.
Goku gritted his teeth in pain, but he managed a smirk. "You think?" Before he raised his legs, bending them as he aimed well. A deep blue ball of Ki formed at the soles of his feet. "Wha-" Yao's surprised shout was cut as Goku sent the improvised Ki blast, destroying the arms, thus freeing him, and taking out Yao's upper body in a shower of dark green blood.
"Yuck! You got all of your stuff on me!" complained Goku as he jumped around, shaking his body to get the blood off him. "Well, I finished this moron, so I better go meet up with Krillin," he said before he moved to leave the room.
"Where do you think you're going!?" Yao's sudden outburst halted his steps. Goku looked back, his eyes widening as he saw that Yao was still very much alive. His head was halfway back, and he was still missing his arms, but he was clearly regenerating his injuries.
So he can regenerate, huh? Wonder what the limit of that is. Thought Goku as he watched carefully Lord Yao get back into his original shape.
"You can't kill me! Nothing can! I will keep on regenerating as long as a part of my body survives!" Lord Yao boasted as he flexed his muscles.
"Man, you're really dumb, aren't you? But thanks for the tip anyway." I will try that. Bulma managed it but she had more Ki control, so I don't think it'll last as long, but it'll be enough to dice him up. Thought Goku as he extended his arm in front of him and concentrated.
Meanwhile, Yao picked up his sword and charged at him. Goku didn't pay him any mind as a ball of deep blue Ki formed in front of his hand before it started changing shape. Slowly, it morphed into the shape of a broadsword. It wasn't as stable as the staff Bulma had created when she fought Kefla, but it'd do.
"Yes!" Goku exclaimed, beaming at his success. It needed more training, but he got the feel for it now.
Just then, Yao was upon him, trying to cut him in half. Goku grasped the Ki blade and swung, the blade easily cutting Lord Yao's sword in half as easy as a hot knife through butter, making the demonic boar's eyes bulge in pure shock. He didn't get the time to even say anything as Goku's arm blurred and Yao was cut to pieces before the Ki blade disappeared. Goku didn't stop as he gathered a massive ball of Ki and fired it, completely destroying Yao's cut body parts and killing the demon.
"No blood, this time." Goku let up a sigh of relief. He turned around and raced out of the cave to meet with Krillin, hoping that his friend was already done with his opponent.
-]||[-
Krillin took a stance as he observed his opponent. The chicken demon thingy was looking at him smugly, which irked Krillin a lot. The prisoners have backed down to the entrance of the cave so they won't get in the way, though if they were more durable, Krillin was tempted to let them get hit once or twice. Sure, he understood they feared for their families, but being tricked like this still rubbed him the wrong way. They were lucky that they were normal humans. "Let's see what you've got, chicken." He taunted his enemy.
Torga bristled. "C-Chicken! How dare you? Torga is an eagle demon!"
Krillin quirked an eyebrow. "Eagle? Dude, have you ever looked in a mirror? No matter, I'll kick your ass so bad that you'll be laying eggs from your mouth!"
"Torga is pissed for sure! You think you can insult Torga and get away with it, baldie?" the demon yelled as he spread his wings. "I'll cut off your head and keep it as a trophy alongside your friend's." He sprung forward at Krillin, rotating his body at very high speed, yelling. "Drill Peck!"
Krillin tensed, ready to tank now that he was on guard. However, his eyes widened as Torga was upon him, moving at an impossible speed. He barely had any time to just jump to the side, but he didn't completely dodge the attack as he screamed in pain, feeling his side being slashed again.
Torga continued spinning, moving upward until he ended up in the air. He floated, looking down smugly at Krillin. Krillin stood up again, now with both of his sides injured. He gritted his teeth, glaring at the flying chicken. He is fast, too fast! He thought. He aimed at Torga and fired several Ki blasts that Torga easily manoeuvred around. Okay, this is going to be harder than I thought. He thought before he launched himself in the air, taking the battle to Torga.
"Hahaha! Are you a moron? You think that you can take Torga on in the sky?"
Krillin didn't pay him any mind as he flew as fast as he could at Torga. His max speed proved useless, however, as Torga easily blurred, moving faster than Krillin expected and dodged the attack. Torga didn't wait for him as he slashed his wings, and several air blades were sent toward Krillin. Krillin managed to dodge them but realised that Torga was right. He couldn't fight him in the air, so he went back to the ground, thinking about a possible strategy.
"Let's see if you can dodge this! Ha!" Krillin yelled as he launched multiple Ki blasts that Torga started dodging. However, this time Krillin didn't stop and simply started firing faster and faster.
"Gaah!"
Krillin grinned as a few blasts scored, hitting Torga's body, but the power behind them wasn't strong enough to deal enough damage.
"Why you!? Fine! Double Team!" Torga screamed as he blurred, and a moment later, there were easily two dozen Torga flying in the air, taking Krillin aback. It was enough to make him stop firing Ki blasts for a moment.
Wow, are those copies or illusions like the after image? He thought as he eyed the now Torga army warily.
"Let's see you hit me now!" Torga announced as he tucked his wings and dived fast at Krillin. Krillin panicked, seeing all those copies dive at him impossibly fast. He started firing Ki blasts again, hoping to hit the original, which proved hard as he watched his blasts go through each Torga, proving them more illusions than literal copies.
He only discovered which the original was just as the demon was upon him, yelling "Flying Press!" as he slammed against him. Krillin cried out in pain as he was sent flying, crashing into several trees behind him before his body was stopped.
"Fuck!" cursed Krillin, his whole body feeling sore as he picked himself up. Thankfully, nothing was broken, but he was sure that another hit like that and it'd not be the case anymore. He made his back to the clearing and saw Torga floating above the ground, smirking at him.
"Ready to give up?"
Krillin glared at him. "There is no way that I'm losing to a chicken!" Bulma and Kefla will never let him live it down. They'd track him down to the afterlife to make fun of him. Besides, Goku trusted him to protect those people, and there was no way he was failing his friend.
"We shall see! Torga is going to skin that bald head of yours!"
"Hey! Leave my head alone! What's with you people and my head!?" Torga growled as he launched himself at Krillin again.
"Drill Peck!" The corkscrewing attack was fast, but after seeing it before and knowing its speed, Krillin managed to dodge it in time. However, he was surprised when Torga managed to stop himself just as he went past him, moving his head back before the demon chicken thrust his face forward at breakneck speed. "Peck!" a nearly invisible beak flying at him.
Krillin's eyes widened as he ducked his head, feeling something pass above him. He looked behind him and saw that the ground now had a deep crater in it. Krillin gulped, knowing that he couldn't afford to let himself be hit by that attack.
"Let's see if you can dodge this! Double Peck Attack!" Torga screamed as his head blurred, sending a dozen or so invisible beaks at Krillin. Krillin hastily jumped backwards, using a Ki blast to move faster. He did just in time as the ground he stood on just a moment before was replaced by several deep craters.
"Fine then!" Said Torga as he took to the sky. "We'll see how you're going to dodge Torga's next attack!" He dived down fast, tucking his wings. Blue flame engulfed his body as he moved at an impossible speed towards Krillin.
"BRAVE BIRD!" He screeched.
Krillin instinctively knew that he wasn't dodging the next attack. So he stood his ground, crossing his arms and pumping as much Ki as possible into them and his front, to tank the attack. As soon as he crossed his arms, he felt Torga hit him. For less than a moment, there was a struggle as Krillin gritted his teeth in pain. Then an explosion followed.
"GAAAH!" Krillin screamed in pain as he was sent flying. He crashed into a large rock, breaking it and continued flying into several trees. A final tree finally stopped his flight. Krillin lay there for a few moments, growing in pain. He had several burns on his body, especially his arms, and he could feel that his arms and ribs might be cracked from the attack. Thankfully, the Ki he used was enough to prevent any mortal damage, otherwise, that move could've seriously done some serious harm.
He groaned as he shakenly stood up. That annoying demon was hard to fight against for him. He was fast, much faster than him which made avoiding his attacks or hitting him near impossible. The Destructo Ball and the Kamehameha both need time to charge. A time he would not get with Torga flying around. He needed some way for him to disable Torga's wings, which meant landing a decent attack. As he walked back into the clearing, Krillin got an idea.
Torga looked like he wasn't in that much better state. He was panting, and his feathers were ruffled, aside from the few damages he got from Krillin's previous Ki attacks. Krillin doubted that the chicken demon could do the Brave Bird move again so soon.
"Y-You're still alive!?" Torga stuttered, visibly flustered that his ultimate move failed to kill Krillin.
Krillin smirked. "As if A fried chicken would do me in!" he taunted. He had an idea of what he wanted to do, but what remained was how he was going to do it. A vein burst on Torga's forehead.
"Torga is going to kill you!" the chicken screeched as Torga opened his beak. Krillin watched curiously as the beak glowed. "Beak Blast!" Torga yelled as a fast blast of white Ki flew towards Krillin. Krillin's eyes widened at the speed of the attack. He managed to dodge when it hit the ground and exploded, sending dust and smoke flying out.
Krillin grinned as the idea solidified in his head. Tongue out and slapping his butt, Krillin laughed as he taunted Torga. "Man, are you even trying to hit me? And you call yourself an eagle demon with that eyesight?"
"WHY YOU!" Torga growled. "Beak Blast!" Krillin dodged.
"Beak Blast!"
"Beak Blast!"
"Beak Blast!"
"Beak Blast!"
Krillin dodged again and again as Torga continued firing, getting more and more frustrated that he wasn't hitting Krillin. That frustration made him miss even more. Soon, Torga was panting as a cloud of dust and smoke obscured Krillin. He waved his wings, sending a blast of air that cleared the area, but there was no sign of Krillin.
"Did Torga blast him to pieces?" He wondered out loud as he moved closer to where Krillin was last seen, but he found no remains of the bald kid. "HAHAHAHA! That's what you get for facing Torga!"
Krillin was around, however. He was merely transformed into a rock that was now behind the cackling chicken demon. Bulma had taught him the Transformation technique while they were training with Master Roshi. While he was better than Goku and Kefla at it, he still needed some time to transform, hence the need for a distraction. The smoke and dust screen was a perfect way for that. POOF! Krillin transformed back instantly. His two arms were extended forward. There were two golden Ki balls in front of each open palm, a miniature and much more stable version of his Destructo Ball.
He decided to name them on the fly as he sent them at the distracted Torga. "Rock Blasts!"
"HAhu-" Torga seemed to notice far too late as he tried to turn around only for both of his wings to be torn apart by the shredding power of the Rock Blasts. Blood flew like a fountain as his wings were destroyed, making him howl in pain. He didn't get any chance to do anything as Krillin continued forward, body slamming into him in a rollout.
The chicken demon was sent rolling on the ground several times before he stopped in a pool of his own blood. He writhed in pain, screaming bloody murder at Krillin. Krillin cupped his hands together as Ki started gathering between them.
He watched as Torga tried to soldier through his pain and stand up. He did so shakenly. "I'M GOING TO FUCKING RIP YOU APART!" Torga screeched as energy gathered into his beak.
He didn't get the chance, however, as Krillin was finished preparing his own attack.
"Kamehameha!" he yelled with all his might as he sent the beam of death at the chicken demon. Torga couldn't react in time as he was hit square with the Turtle School's ultimate move. It proved too much for him, as he was literally vaporised on the spot.
Krillin watched in relief as he won the fight. "I don't think I'm eating chicken any time soon," he said, panting heavily as he fell to the ground to take a breather. A few minutes later, he was good enough to move again as he picked himself up. The prisoners looked at him with a mix of fear and awe, but before he could address them, he saw Goku exit the mine.
"Ah, you're done with your opponent too?" asked Goku, who didn't appear as if he had as much hard time as he did.
"Yeah," he said before he glared at the prisoners. "Now, any more funny surprises?" he asked, and the men shook their heads in fear.
"Good, let's get you out of here."
-]||[-
"Are you sure you don't want to follow us through?" one of the men said just before he stepped through the portal. He was the last one left after Goku and Krillin got them back safely to the portal and told them to leave.
"We still have to deal with those in the castle," said Goku. "You won't be safe as long as they're still a threat." Not to mention, Goku was excited to see what kind of strong enemies lay waiting in the massive castle.
The man looked troubled, but he bowed deeply to them. "Thank you, truly." And he hurried to go through the portal back to his home.
They turned around and made their way toward the castle.
The castle stood at the cliff like it was jutting off it naturally, and then the walls had been sculpted by human hands to smooth it. It was a yellow-brownish colour that matched the rocks underneath it, with four round towers twice as tall as the walls. The gate was big and made of dark brown wood, and beside it was a small door. When they arrived at the castle, they noticed the door was actually open, and a small… something was peeking out of it.
It looked like a mix of a man and a frog, short and round, with two mismatched eyes and a few brown hairs on the side of its head. It was dressed in a red butler outfit. The man-frog noticed and yelped. He made to re-enter the castle, but Goku was faster. He grabbed him, preventing him from escaping before he slammed him against the wall.
"N-No, please. Don't hurt Igor!" the now-named Igor cried out pathetically.
Krillin, who was now near them, held a hand up. A ball of Ki formed above his open palm. "If you don't want us to kill you, then you better tell us what we want." Igor whimpered and tried to get away from the Ki ball as far as he could by being held by Goku.
"Igor will answer! P-Please, don't hurt Igor!"
"Then answer," Krillin said gravely. "Who is in this castle? And why are you kidnapping humans?"
Igor nodded. "I-I'll answer! This castle belongs to Lord Lucifer! He also has King Gurumes and Lord Ghastel under his command!"
"What do you need the humans for?" asked Goku, trying to sound menacing.
Igor shivered. "Lord Lucifer wants the Blood Rubies! They be jewels that are said to give great power the more you consume. The rubies need blood sacrifices and souls to grow stronger, so humans be taken to be used as sacrifice, and found those rubies."
Goku scowled, his anger flaring at the demons. He promised that he'll make Lucifer pay. "Did you hurt anyone yourself?" If he did, then there was no saving Igor. Goku wasn't a murder-happy teen, but he'd easily kill people who deserved it and give a chance to those who earned it. It was what Master Roshi taught them.
Igor shook his head hastily. "N-NO! Igor is be simple servant, oh great human lords! I only do what the lords asks me to, and I be too weak to hurt any human!"
Goku narrowed his eyes at the demon, but he didn't sense any lie. Sensing the demon's power levels, Goku was also sure that truly the demon could barely hurt a child. "Go then, run and never come back. If I see you again, I'll kill you."
Igor didn't waste any time as he scampered off.
Both Krillin and Goku held their serious faces until he disappeared from the horizon before they broke out laughing. "Man, I've never interrogated anyone before," said Krillin, between his laughs. "I totally wanted to do that at least once."
Goku wiped out a tear. "Yup, did you see his face? He called us great human lords!"
It took them a few moments to calm down before they decided it was time to enter the castle. Going through the small open door, they found themselves in a narrow corridor lit up by torches. They walked down the path until they entered a large hall with two openings on either side of it.
"Wanna split?" asked Goku.
"Yeah."
Goku chose the left path while Krillin went for the right one. "Take care, Krillin. Don't let any demon beat ya up."
"You too, Goku!"
-]||[-
Lucifer groaned in pleasure as the trickle of power flowed through his veins like sweet nectar. He let the husk of the formerly beautiful young woman fall from his hands to the floor beside his bed unceremoniously. He wrinkled his face in disgust as he looked at the hands that held the woman's body. It'd need to be washed and cleaned soon, and so did his fangs. He'd never want to catch any disease that these hairless monkeys might have.
He wasn't like the other demons under his service, so he didn't partake in carnal pleasures with lowly creatures like these humans. However, their blood provided very much-needed nourishment, though he preferred the taste of the young virgin women the most.
"Igor! Igor, come here and get rid of this waste."
He waited for a few moments, but the disgusting creature didn't appear. "Where did that fool run off to again? I'll have his hide when I find him." Shrugging, he pointed his hand at the corpse before he turned it to ashes with a Ki blast. He frowned a little at the bit of the power he just got drained out of him.
These useless humans barely provided enough to sate him. No matter, he decided as he looked at the side of the bed. A crystal bowl sat on the small table there full of blood-red rubies. A smile came to his face as he inched closer to it.
The Blood Rubies were strong, and forcing humans to mine for them made them stronger. They absorbed their suffering, their blood, and their very soul. It was also what humans were good for, as he couldn't waste his demons on such menial tasks. It was a slow process for sure, but he was patient. He'd wait years, decades or even centuries, but in the end, he'd reach his goals even if he had to sacrifice the whole human race for it.
"One day, I'll make you pay… All of you," he swore, promising vengeance on those who disrespected him. Those Demons Kings and Demon Gods. "One day, I, Lucifer will stand above you all. I'll rule the Demon Realm, and you'll all be forced to bow before my brilliance."
Suddenly, Lucifer stiffened as he sensed something, two somethings in fact. "It seems that two rats have managed to get in, interesting." He didn't like the blood taste of males, but these two's blood sang to him with power. Especially one of them, it reeked of primal energy that he has never felt in his life.
He reached out to the Blood Rubies, taking a handful before he put it in his mouth. The rubies were crushed under his sharp and strong teeth as he sensed the two boys split. Energy flowed through him like a raging river, nourishing him, and increasing his strength rapidly. Cruel eyes laughed in amusement as he could hear the moans and screams of the tortured souls that were in those rubies.
"If you survive Ghastel and Gurumes, I'll be there to fight you… It'd be interesting, and here I was getting bored." He laughed maniacally into the night.
-]||[-
Goku raced down the corridor, trying to sense anyone and failing. Somehow, since they'd arrived here in this strange place, he and Krillin were unable to sense enemies unless they were right on top of them. Something about this place interfered with their senses and Ki.
As Goku ran down the length of the corridor, he noticed how the stones were getting rougher, losing their polished look to something more natural. After a few more minutes the corridor started expanding slowly, and soon Goku found himself running through a cavern.
A terrible smell assaulted his senses; the smells of sulfur, acids and decay. Stalactites went down from the cave's ceiling to meet stalagmites rising up that created beautiful rock formation if it weren't for the putrid-looking sickly yellow and green substance covering some of them, melting half of it down. Melted skeletons of humans and various creatures littered the ground and grew in number the further Goku went in.
The cave eventually widened into a large chamber, and Goku stopped staring at the creature in the middle of it. It was large, its face alone was as big as Goku's body. Height-wise, it took seven Gokus standing on top of each other to reach its chin, and it was as wide as it was tall. Sickly purple frog-like skin covered its back, face and limbs, turning into a garish yellow colour for its belly and front. Its legs were short and barely visibly under its belly, while his arms were long and thick. It had two mismatched eyes, with one of them being far bigger than the other, and two pointed ears. It also smelled horrible.
It was laying down on the ground, head resting on its hand as it gazed lazily at Goku. "Hi… Your name?" the monster asked.
"Son Goku, you?"
It lazily inserted a finger in its ear. "King Gurumes."
"Nice to meetcha."
"Likewise," Gurumes said as he slowly stood up. "Well, I ate already, but one more won't hurt. One can always make more space in his stomach for food."
Goku nodded. "Yup, that's what I say."
"A kindred spirit." Gurumes was on his feet now, a sick grin on his face. "Was talking about you though."
"Is that so?" Goku tilted his head as he took his stance. "Sorry, but I already have other reservations."
Gurumes shrugged. "Understandable… but it was an order not an invitation!" he bounced on Goku with a speed that belied his size. Goku rolled to the side as Gurumes's fist impacted the place he was just standing on. The whole chamber shook as the ground split open from Gurumes's attack, clearly, the demon lacked neither speed nor power.
Goku didn't stand still for long as he himself bounced on Gurumes, fist clenched, and delivered a strong punch. Gurumes didn't even try to dodge as Goku's fist hit him square in the side. However, the result was not what Goku expected as his fist sank into Gurumes's flesh, the impact dispersing as if Goku gently touched the demon, not punched him. Goku's eyes widened in shock.
"What?" Gurumes grinned at him, and then Goku felt pain as the demon's fist, nearly as large as his body, sent him flying into one of the walls of the cave, cracking it and leaving a Goku imprint on it.
"Ugh!" Goku exclaimed in pain as he picked himself up. "What the hell was that?"
Gurumes cackled. "Do you expect me to answer you and explain my power to you?"
"Actually, yes," Goku answered simply.
Gurumes blinked at the answer. "Oh… well, sorry about that, but you'll have to earn it. Try finding the answer yourself, I don't like giving answers so easily away like some discount villain."
Goku clicked his tongue in annoyance. Of all people, he had to fight someone that for once didn't explain his powers like he was too eager to lose. Goku liked to fight, yes, and the challenge would prove exciting at any other time, but he also really hated this place. He couldn't stand the smell, the air or the feeling of the Ki for some reason. It made his skin crawl and just felt wrong to him. He had no idea where on the planet they were after they passed the portal, but for sure, this place wasn't somewhere humans and others would live in. No wonder it was full of these demons.
"Fine, if you don't want to talk, then I'll make you talk myself." Goku blurred, moving at the top of his speed and was inside Gurumes's guard. The demon didn't even react, for even if he was fast, he still wasn't as fast as Goku. Arm cocked back, Goku sent it forward as hard as he could to the same result from before. He didn't stop though as he followed by a punch with his other fist, then a kick. A flurry of attacks followed that would've destroyed any opponent Goku has faced thus far.
However, aside from moving Gurumes a few feet back, when Goku stopped and leapt back, Gurumes showed no sign of any damage at all. Gurumes yawned lazily. "You finished?" he asked mockingly.
Ticked, Goku shouted loudly. "Not even close!" He leapt again for another fierce attack.
A punch to Gurumes's face, a side kick to his ribs and a follow-up to the demon's knee. He jumped in the air, his Power Pole in hand. "Extend!" and with a strong side swipe, he hit the side of Gurumes's head. The demon's head bent side-way, and Goku cheered thinking that he scored a good hit, but Gurumes merely righted his head, looking as if nothing happened. Teeth grinding in frustration, Goku moved and sent a storm of jabs and swipes using his Power Pole, but the only thing that he managed to do was tire himself out.
"You…" Goku huffed out in frustration. "Do physical attacks not work on you?"
Gurumes grinned maliciously. "Exactly. My hide is tough but still malleable as rubber. No physical attack no matter how strong would work on me. I've withstood mountain-shattering punches with not a bruise to show for it."
Gurumes cracked his knuckles. "My turn then."
He jumped fast and was upon Goku in a moment. A huge fist came down to crush Goku. Goku crossed his arms, blocking the attack. A tug of force ensued as Gurumes tried to crush Goku, while Goku's feet sank to the ground under Gurumes's weight. Goku gathered his strength, and with a yell, he pushed the demon back, staggering Gurumes.
A blue ball of Ki formed in Goku's hand, ready to let it loose. Gurumes, however, regained his balance and spat a slimy-looking green ball from his mouth. Goku dodged, Ki dispersing with his lack of focus, the slimy ball. When it hit the ground where Goku stood not a moment earlier, smoke rose as the acid burned through it easily, leaving a molten misshapen hole. I guess he is the reason for the melted rock and skeletons from back then. Goku thought as he eyed Gurumes warily.
"Not bad," Gurumes praised. "I like food that can fight back. It makes for a better meal after I defeat them."
Goku narrowed his eyes. "Well, too bad then. I don't like being eaten, so the only thing you'll eat is your ass being handed to you."
The demon laughed. "I see, you still think you have a chance. Let's test that!" With a yell, Gurumes launched several acid balls at Goku. Goku ran, swiftly dodging them, smoke rising as they hit the ground. Gurumes meanwhile laughed. "You have no way of defeating me!"
Goku ignored him as he continued to dodge more and more of the acid balls. If physical attacks won't work, how about Ki attacks? A big Ki ball, as big as Goku, gathered on top of his palm before he threw it. The Ki ball moved towards Gurumes, however, before it hit him, the ball swerved upwards.
"You missed," Gurumes informed him simply.
Goku smirked. "You want to eat? Have your fill!" He raised his arm in the air, his palm open before he clenched his fist and yelled with all his might. "Gohan da you!" The ball of Ki, which was still hovering in the air, suddenly shot numerous Ki blasts from it. A wave of blue Ki blasts poured down on the demon who didn't even try to defend himself. A series of small explosions before a large one engulfed the area as the rest of the blasts landed at the same time.
That should do it. Goku thought for a moment, panting slightly. He was getting tired from fighting since the morning. However, when the dust settled, Goku was shocked to see Gurumes standing in his place with not a single scratch on him. Goku took a step back, eyes wide and sweat dripping from his forehead.
Gurumes clutched his belly as he laughed. "You…" he wheezed. "If physical attacks won't work, then surely Ki would do the trick. Is that what you thought? Well, sorry to break it to you, but Ki attacks don't work on me either!" Gurumes moved too fast for the shocked Goku. A punch saw Goku being sent into another wall of the chamber.
He stood up shakenly, the air having been knocked out of his lungs, but before he could do anything else, Gurumes was upon him. The demon unleashed a barrage of punches that Goku either dodged or blocked. However, each time he blocked, he could feel his bones straining under the attacks. Bruises started forming upon his body as he started getting hit more and more. Shit. Goku cursed as another hit connected, nailing him in the ribs. He has no idea what to do since neither Ki nor physical attacks worked against Gurumes. At this rate… anger coursed through Goku's body, and unknown to both Goku and the demon, Goku's eyes flickered to yellow for a moment, but before anything could happen, Goku suddenly felt as if all his energy were drained out of him. He looked and saw Gurumes with his tail in his massive hand.
"Hmm… I've never seen a human with a tail before. What are you?" Gurumes looked at Goku and noticed his state. "Oho?" He squeezed his tail, making Goku yelp as more of his strength was fleeting out of his body. "Is this your weakness?" Gurumes grinned manically. He lifted Goku from his tail and slammed him to the ground.
"Agh." Goku cried out in pain, weakly. And then he was slammed again, and again. Gurumes continued to slam Goku around while holding his tail for a few more minutes before he stopped. He held him upside down, looking at him with malice. Goku was heavily bruised, some blood dripping from various wounds and scratches on his body. He groaned weakly in pain; part from his tail and part from the punishment he suffered. "Any last word?"
Goku groaned. "Are the others stronger than you?"
"Hmm? Only Lord Lucifer is stronger than me, the others are weaker, even Ghastel."
Goku sighed in relief knowing that Krillin wasn't going to face someone as strong as Gurumes alone. Though most of Gurumes strength came from his ability to withstand Ki and physical attacks, and otherwise, Goku would have defeated him. It wasn't like Goku had no faith in Krillin's ability, but he was stronger than Krillin, and Krillin suffered more injuries in his previous fight. Now, I only have to find a way to defeat this guy. He thought as Gurumes opened his mouth wide enough that a grown man could fit it before he shoved Goku in.
Slowly, Goku's strength returned as his tail wasn't being squeezed now, though it didn't help with his injuries. He found himself in a moment inside Gurumes' stomach. Acid-like substances surrounded him to his chest. "Ow!" Goku yelped as parts of his skin started burning. Shit! If I stay in here, then I'm going to die! Goku thought frantically as he started thinking about how he was to get out of here and defeat Gurumes. Am I going to die like this? Thought Goku indignantly. He was no Kefla, but he still had some pride in himself, and the thought of himself becoming someone's food got him really angry. Kefla… Bulma.. and Krillin… I can't just die and leave my friends like that. I REFUSE!
"I'M NOT GOING TO DIE HERE!" Goku yelled, channelling the anger and frustration that he has been feeling to bolster himself.
Goku's Ki skyrocketed, surrounding his body, growing more and more potent as Goku put his all into it.
"I REFUSE!" With a mighty yell, Goku raised his arms up. The Ki exploded upwards from every part of Goku's body.
Outside, Gurumes suddenly stopped, his stomach starting to feel weird. Then, he looked down as part of his stomach bulged, then another, and another.
He was bloating up. "What the-" Gurumes couldn't continue his thought as his head bulged before a brilliant pillar of blue Ki exploded from his body, tearing the upper part up apart as it disintegrated. It continued upwards through the roof of the cave, to the upper floors and then into the sky through the roof of the castle shaking it all.
Goku jumped out of the destroyed corpse, bruised, bloody and suffering some burns but otherwise alive. He fell to his butt, panting heavily as he expanded too much energy. "Just a few moments," he said as his eyes dropped to rest after a surprisingly tough fight.
"Will continue after just a little nap." And he was asleep.
-]||[-
Krillin ran down through the corridor he chose. It was an empty bar of the torches that illuminated it, and even then Krillin noticed that the number of torches went down the deeper he went. He came upon the first room a few minutes after that, but it was a big bare stone room and nothing else. So he kept on running, encountering more and more empty rooms until the corridor itself ended up in a big vast stone room that had nothing in it. Not even a torch.
There was barely enough light in the room to make out a door at the very end of it. Before Krillin could move further, pain flared in his back as he was suddenly hit and thrown face-first into the wall at the end of the room.
"Aggh!" Krillin cried out in pain as he crashed into the wall, both from his face that was smashed into it and the pain from his back. Coughing, he stood and turned around to see his attacker though he knew not how his attacker sneaked on him.
The enemy was a large red-skinned demon with two large yellow eyes and black irises. He also had two thick white horns going out of his head. He wore a black loincloth along with two golden wristbands and bronze armour, as well as wielding two clubs with orange spheres and a white bandage that was floating around his body. The demon smirked at him. "Heh, so you're my prey, noseless brat. I'm surprised that you made it so far."
A vein popped on Krillin's forehead. "Don't call me a noseless brat! And who are you supposed to be?" he looked at the demon's clubs. "The drummer?"
The demon growled at him. "I'm Ghastel! The leader of the Lord Lucifer's Ogre Demons!"
I see," said Krillin before he immediately fired a Ki blast that Ghastel dodged by jumping sideways.
"What the hell?" Exclaimed the demon. "Attacking without warning? You won't even introduce yourself? How underhanded."
Krillin's eyes twitched. "You're the one who attacked me with a sneak attack! And I don't have time to waste chatting with a soon-to-be-dead demon!"
Ghastel growled. "I'm a demon! A sneak attack is expected of me, dammit!" He moved his hand in a way as if slashing upwards. "Shadow Claw!" Krillin's eyes widened as the shadows in front of him rose as if they were large sharp claws made of shadows. He managed to jump back to avoid it, but not entirely as one claw grazed his cheek, drawing blood.
"What the hell!?" he exclaimed, shocked how the shadows attacked him as if they were solid things. "Hahaha! I'm Ghastel of the Shadow! The power of shadows belongs to me!"
I see, so this is why the room is dark. Thought Krillin, taking a stance to get ready for whatever the demon was going to throw at him.
"Shadow Claw!" Ghastel roared again, though this time, knowing what to expect, Krillin managed to dodge it. However, Ghastel wasn't finished as he rushed him, the two clubs in his hands ominously warped by a dark veil. "Shadow Bone!" He yelled as he attacked Krillin in a rush of swings and jabs, high and low. Krillin was faster though and managed to block all of them, however, the attacks for some reason were stronger than he thought they'd be, and he felt as if the dark energy was seeping into his body, making him weaker.
Having enough, Krillin yelled, sending a small shockwave of Ki that unbalanced Ghastel and sent his two clubs flying. Krillin made use of the opportunity to headbutt Ghastel in the stomach, making him bend to grasp it, coughing up spittle. Krillin didn't waste a chance to follow up with a roundhouse kick to the side of the demon's head, sending him flying. Ghastel crashed into one of the walls, coughing up some blood, an ugly bruise forming on his face. He doesn't seem that powerful aside from his weird shadow powers. Thought Krillin as Ghastel stood up, glaring murderously at Krillin.
"I'll show you! Shadow Force!" The shadow around him rose, elongated and wrapped around Ghastel until he was one with the shadows, no longer visible to Krillin.
"What!" Krillin exclaimed as his opponent disappeared. He couldn't sense him at all, as if he wasn't with him anymore. Krillin stood in the middle of the room, looking around for the slightest of movements, but he couldn't see anything at all. Then, Ghastel reappeared just in front of Krillin, his fist cocked and nailed Krillin straight in the face, sending him flying. "Shadow Force!" The demon yelled again as he once again disappeared before he reappeared again just beside Krillin, sending a side kick that Krillin barely blocked.
So he can't attack without revealing his location. Thought Krillin as he was attacked once again. But that doesn't matter if I can't sense him! This time, after the next attack, Ghastel slashed his hand upwards. "Shadow Claw!" and shadowy claws extended from the ground, two of them nailing Krillin in one of his left leg and right arm. Krillin cried out in pain, but he stood up again nonetheless. He narrowed his eyes as Ghastel stood still before he punched the air.
"Shadow Punch!" a large spectral fist hovered in the air in front of Ghastel for a moment before it rocked it at Krillin too fast for him to dodge.
"AGGH!" Krillin crashed into the wall behind him hard enough that he formed a Krillin-shaped hole in it. Shit… I need to take away his advantage… I can't fight him in the shadows… wait, that's it! He untangled himself from the wall, gathering his focus before he launched several Ki balls around. Ghastel dodged them easily, but that wasn't Krillin's intention. Using all the control that he had, he made the Ki balls hang in the air, suspended. The light they gave wiped out almost all the shadows in the room with Ghastel trapped in between them. It was hard, and Krillin felt sweat dripping down his forehead, but his Ki control allowed it.
Ghastel cackled. "I don't know what you are trying to do. But, Shadow Force!" However, when nothing happened, he looked around and finally noticed Krillin's objective. "What! My shadows!" He exclaimed, glaring at Krillin. "Fine! You've asked for it!" He put his hands, palms open, in front of him and gathered a large ball made of shadows that seemed to be formed by him. He started sweating and panting, as the ball got bigger, giving Krillin the knowledge that it wasn't something that he could do forever. Unlike his previous attacks.
"Shadow Ball!" Ghastel howled as he launched the large shadow ball at Krillin. In response, Krillin extended his hand in front of it, and a golden Ki ball formed. The ball was formed of hundreds and hundreds of saws made of Ki that spun and rotated in every direction giving the shape of a ball. It wasn't a stable attack as it exploded soon after release, but it was something that would deliver insane damage as it shredded anything.
"Destructo Ball!" The two balls met halfway.
For a moment, there was a struggle before Krillin's Destructo Ball exploded, cancelling out the other ball with a brilliant show of light. Krillin took advantage of that, bouncing on Ghastel. He kicked and punched, delivering a storm of attacks that the demon couldn't respond to. Ghastel cried out in pain as one of Krillin's punches broke his arm before an axe kick sent him crashing into the ground. Krillin jumped in the air above him, and for a moment he seemed to float and in his cupped hands, golden Ki gathered.
"Kamehameha!" With a mighty yell, Krillin unleashed the Kame Sennin School's signature attack. A brilliant golden beam of energy crashed down on Ghastel. The demon howled in pain as it was disintegrated by the attack which continued past Ghastel into the ground and then on the floors below, shaking the whole room.
Krillin fell down, his energy spent just as the Ki balls in the air exploded now that he wasn't focusing on them anymore. He avoided the explosions, but the gust of wind threw him into one of the walls.
"Just a little rest won't hurt," he mumbled as his eyelids closed down.
-]||[-
Goku and Krillin looked at each other as they suddenly appeared in a wide room, each coming from a different path and arriving at the same time. Both were wounded, and tired, but otherwise alive and kicking. The room was huge with a large stairway leading to the second floor.
"Krillin! You're okay?" Goku asked, happy to see his friend.
Krillin nodded. "Yeah… What about you? You look more injured than I remember."
"I fought a tough guy that tried to, and actually got to eat me… I won in the end," Goku said simply, making Krillin sweatdrop at the ease he talked about being eaten.
A sudden sound of clapping caught their attention. They turned toward the stair to see a man standing at the very top of it. He was tall and handsome looking. His skin was pale blue with two sharp red eyes and pointy ears. His hair was styled similar to Goku's though his was symmetrical, and he had a widow's peak. He wore a formal black suit complete with a red bow tie.
"I congratulate you, you two. You managed to defeat my strongest minions and made it this far," said the man smugly and with a flourish.
"Your minions…" said Krillin.
Goku figured it out too. "That means you're Lucifer." A flicker of irritation flashed in those inhuman eyes.
"Yes, I'm Lord Lucifer. Congratulations on making it so far." Two long fangs grew from his mouth as he smiled at them.
"Now, entertain me for a while before I kill you."
-]||[-
Kefla panted as she ducked under a fist. Her counter-attack was easily avoided as the very heavy turtle shell on her back affected her speed. Where the hell are they? It's been three months and they still aren't back! She thought as her kick was sidestepped, and a left hook nailed her ribs and sent her a few feet back.
Growling, she bounced, sending a flurry of attacks at her opponent. They should be done by now…. No, they should've been back weeks ago! D-Did something happen to them? She yelled in frustration as none of her attacks found their mark. A movement in the sky in the corner of her eyes caught her attention. She looked, hoping to see a figure flying toward the island, but it was pointless when she realised that it was just some bird. The distraction, however, cost her dearly as a kick connected with her chin and sent her crashing into the ocean. Groaning, she picked herself up and went back to the island, ready to continue.
"Stop, this is enough," said Master Roshi, her opponent.
"I can still go on!"
Master Roshi shook his head. "You're obviously distracted by something else. It's useless to continue," he said, and Kefla found herself unable to disagree. "What's on your mind, lass?"
"I'm just waiting for Kakarot and Krillin to come back so I can kick their ass!"
Master Roshi gave her a disbelieving look. He stared at her for a moment, making her squirm. "Fine!..." she relented, face red in embarrassment. "I'm worried… It's been three months without any news about them."
"Why don't you go and search for them then?"
"How would I do that? The world is huge!"
Master Roshi chuckled. "Well, they were searching for the Dragon Balls, right? If you did the same, then you should meet up with them." Kefla frowned. The logic sounded good to her, and she'd get to stretch her legs a little outside of the island.
"I guess I need to find Bulma and ask for another Dragon Radar then."
-]||[-
AN:
This chapter picks up after the last one with Goku and Krillin going into a part of the Demon realm.
For those wondering, almost none of these characters are OCs, but characters from movies such as "Curse of the Blood Rubies", "Sleeping Princess in Devil's castle" and "GT: A Hero's Legacy".
I hope that you enjoyed that fight the same way I enjoyed writing them. I think most got the references in Krillin's fights.
We see Kefla and we notice that for her, three months have passed since she last saw Goku and Krillin. So the scene and the events of Goku's and Krillin's adventure aren't happening simultaneously.
Kefla now is going to join the hunt for the Dragon Ball, and we will get to see Bulma too!
Next chapter will be a continuation of this one with Lucifer vs Krillin and Goku. There will be a surprise appearance of a character too. Kefla will also take centeral stage at least for parts of the next chapter as she gets involved in the plot with the RR Army.
Anyway, thanks for reading, please review, follow and favourite!