Chapter 2: The new arrivals, and the beginning of the Expo.
Every God and Kai gasped when they heard the Grand Priest's words, causing Piccolo and Vegeta to look at each other as Goku rubbed his chin. "Who's the Thirteenth? Are they strong?" Goku asked, looking up at the Grand Priest when Berrus and Whis refused to answer. "The strongest there is." The Grand Priest replied, a large smile spreading across his face as Goku's eyes lit up. "Did you hear that Vegeta? The Thirteenth is the highest ranking Universe and their fighters are some of the strongest in existence." Goku cheered happily until Berrus grit his teeth. "Will you stop your jabbering for ten seconds!?" he roared, causing everyone to flinch. "You knew about this, didn't you, Whis?" Sighing, Whis hung his head. "Yes." "Then why didn't you tell me?" Berrus asked, glaring at him. "All twelve Angels were told, but we were sworn to silence. I risked a lot revealing that small clipping of information before." Whis explained, sighing when Vegeta stared at him, crossing his arms sternly. "Is there anything else we should know? And I mean more than there stronger than us." Vegeta asked, causing Goku and the others to look at Berrus.
Gritting his teeth, Berrus clenched his fist tightly as he sighed. "You've most likely figured this part out, but the Thirteenth is none other than Universe Thirteen." Hearing his words, Goku and Vegeta shared a skeptical look on their faces as Pan and Bulla copied Piccolo's crossed-arm stare at Berrus.
Shaking his head, Vegeta squinted. "Didn't you tell us that Zeno destroyed the other six Universe's?" Vegeta asked, his gaze deepening when Berrus sighed. "I'm sorry to say that we might have told a teeny tiny lie." Whis stated, chuckling nervously. "Grand Zeno destroyed five Universe's that day. Universe's fourteen through eighteen. The thirteenth Universe was spared from that fate. For the most part; they were forgotten by time, until now. I promise to explain everything in more detail later." Whis explained, humming when Goku, Vegeta and Piccolo gasped. "What is that?" Pan asked, taking a slight step backward in fear.
Looking at a small, circular platform next to the one with the Zeno's thrones, every fighter from the other Universe's stared in silence. "This power is incredible." Piccolo gasped, his eye twitching. "This is insane, the presence... It's making my body tense up." Vegeta admitted, forcing Bulla behind him. "They're here." Berrus stated seconds before a bright bubble formed on the empty platform. "Without further ado. I proudly present to you all; Universe thirteen!" Everyone from every Universe simply stared at the bubble, aghast by the power that was being emitted from it, anticipating the reveal of Universe thirteen's fighters.
Everyone stared in awe as the light faded, revealing seven people standing hand in hand. "Look at that, Vegeta. They don't mind holding hands, you should learn from their example." Berrus mocked, smiling when Vegeta scoffed and crossed his arms.
Releasing each other's hands, the members of Universe thirteen stood side by side. one; a small Kai, similar in appearance to Shin, his Mohawk slicked to the left with a pair of large glasses on the bridge of his nose.
Next to him stood a small, female Angel that was almost identical to Kusu of Universe ten beside her unkempt hair that covered her right eye.
Next to her stood a small girl in a yellow and black dress with matching shoes, cherry blossoms spread throughout her deep, green hair. A fully loaded quiver on her back with a small bow in her hand. She was the shortest of all of them, which contrasted greatly with the man standing next to her.
Next to her stood a giant, one armed man who was taller than the others and easily both the tallest and physically largest person present; the tiniest bit of light was reflected off of his completely bald head with his face and arm covered with the scars of countless battles. A metal plate was fused to the right side of his face with large bolts seemingly holding it in place.
He wore a loose-fitting muscle top and pants, large black boots on his feet and two large weapons upon his back, only visible by their hilts.
Seeing him, Vegeta stepped forward as Goku smiled. "It's his, this insane power. It's incredible… To think someone has this much power." Goku stated, looking at the large man with a wide smile.
Next to him stood another small girl, her tan skin gleaming as her spiky, short brown hair bounced with every movement. A tattered school uniform and high-top shoes adorned her petite frame and a monkey-like tail flicked behind her as she looked around.
Another girl stood next to her; a regal air flowed from her, a bright purple dress adorning her, a long pink tail trailing behind her, accompanying the small, curved horns atop her head which her blue hair wrapped around, defensively.
Next to her stood another man; smaller than the other, his white hair covering his eyes from view.
His clothing consisted of a loose-fitting silk coat which covered a tight undershirt and pants which were all adorned with parts of thick metal armour.
A large sword in the shape of a tuning fork was held tightly in his left hand, with two other katanas strapped to his side with his most outlying quality being his lack of footwear.
The other Universe's gazed at them in wonder as a large smile stretched across the Grand Priest's face.
As they stared at them, the angel attendant of the Thirteenth began to jump and wave. "Kusu! We're here, Kusu!" she called, waving at the angel attendant of the tenth and laughing happily when she waved back. "They're here, they're here!" "I know. Look at him, he's huge! Is he Shougen?" the Zenos cheered, hopping up and down on their thrones, likely arriving while everyone was marvelling at the Thirteenth.
Hearing the Zeno's voices, Berrus and Vegeta bowed as Piccolo forced the girls to follow with him; leaving the only ones standing as Goku and the large man from Universe thirteen, the one that the Zenos had called; Shougen. "Whis, how is it that Grand Zeno knows the name of that mortal? And where is she?" Berrus asked, glaring up at Shougen as he stood defiant, starring up at the Zeno's without fear as everyone else kneeled to the Zenos.
Hearing Berrus's question, Shougen glared at him. "Tsk. If you've got something to say, say it loud enough so that I can hear it, coward!" He commanded, his rough voice scraping the inside of their ears as a smile stretched across his face when Berrus rose. "My lord?" Whis asked, chuckling nervously when the Grand Priest looked down at him. "My name is Berrus; Universe seven's God of Destruction and I will be treated with respect by a lowly mortal like you!" Berrus roared in retort causing Shougen to burst into laughter. "You're a God? Alright then, am I supposed to believe that that robot or that rat are Gods too?" Shougen asked, flinching slightly when he noticed Belmond.
Berrus watched in complete shock when Shougen looked up at the Zenos and laughed, completely unafraid of them or their wrath. "Please, everyone rise. Now that we have all gathered here, we can begin the first match of our Expo. Sorrel; of the ninth, shall face Cabba; of the sixth." As the Grand Priest spoke, both fighters were teleported to the arena below.
Looking over at Universe thirteen, Goku smiled. "Man, that guy is huge. Is he a giant or something?" Goku asked, vibrating in excitement. "What about her; she's got a tail and horns, do you think she's a Dragon?" Bulla asked, vibrating alongside him. "How are we supposed to know? This is the first time any of us have seen them, if you want to know that badly just go and ask them Yourself." Berrus replied, rolling his eye's in annoyance. "That's a great idea, let's go say hi." Goku stated, taking Bulla's before flying away from them. "Wait, what!?" Berrus gasped, his eyes bulging. "You told him to do it, my Lord." Whis explained, bonking Berrus on the head with his staff.
Landing on the back of Universe thirteen's platform. Goku smiled when he realized that they didn't know that he and Bulla were behind them.
Both of their mouths fell open as they looked up at Shougen; aghast by the size of the giant man before them.
Goku smiled in excitement when he realized that even with his hair, he only reached Shougen's lower back as Bulla began closely inspecting the giant black claymores that were magically floating mere inches from his back. "Pay attention to their movements, study their fighting styles. We need to be ready for anything." The small man with the tuning fork sword stated as he turned towards Goku and Bulla and hummed, keeping their presence a secret from the others. "I better get to fight, Kaylin. If you dragged me all this way just to watch other people fight, we're gonna have problems." Shougen growled, looking down at the Kai who wiped his glasses nervously. "Don't worry, Lord Shougen. I'm sure that Grand Zeno is eager to see what you have to offer." The Kai replied, placing his glasses on his nose as he slicked his Mohawk. "You can't wait to fight either, huh?" As Goku spoke from behind him, Shougen jumped. "Who the hell are you?" Shougen asked, spinning around, an angered expression on his face. "Yo, I'm Goku and this is Bulla." Goku answered, looking around for a second before noticing that Bulla was floating behind Shougen, still inspecting his swords. "Shougen, nice to meet you." Shougen introduced himself, his demeanour softening when he realized that Goku meant no harm.
Watching Bulla closely, Shougen chuckled slightly when she floated back down to Goku's side and waved at him.
Shaking Goku's hand, Shougen rose an eyebrow. "You know, you look a lot like Zagraeus." Hearing Shougen's statement, Goku's eyes shot open in excitement. "Who's Zagraeus? Is he strong?" He asked, looking around to try and find the mystery fighter. "Zagraeus isn't here, he's the strongest fighter in our Universe. As far as we're concerned, Zagraeus is the strongest fighter there is." Kaylin answered.
Hearing the Kai's words, Goku began to shake with excitement. "I do have to agree with Lord Shougen though. The resemblance between you two is uncanny, to say the least." Kaylin continued, pushing his glasses upon the bridge of his nose. "I don't know anything about that, I've never met anyone named Zagraeus before and if he's as strong as you say. I'm pretty sure I would've remembered him. Hey, wait a minute, where's your God? And why does he keep calling you Lord Shougen, are you a King or something?" Goku asked, looking around "Lord Shougen is our God, silly." The Angel answered, pushing Goku playfully. "Really? Huh, he doesn't give off the God vibes like the others do." As Goku spoke, Shougen cracked his knuckles. "I'm not a God, I'm just a man. I'm not special at all. I can't fly or breathe fire or anything like that. I'm just a normal guy, like you. How many times have I told you not to call me that, Kaseaen?" Shougen answered glaring at the Angel who playfully hit herself in the head. "So you're an Angel, right?" Bulla asked, pointing at her. "Yup, I'm the Angel attendant for the God of Destruction of Universe thirteen." She announced, giving Bulla a thumbs up. "And this is Kaylin, my best friend and the last remaining Kai of our Universe." She stated, pulling Kaylin into a hug as she introduced him.
Sighing, he slicked his Mohawk once again. "A pleasure." He added, bowing to Goku and Bulla. "Since we're introducing ourselves, I guess we might as well do it all the way." Shougen sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "I'm Shougen, this is my wife; Fleur." Seeing Shougen motioning at the small girl next to him with the yellow dress and bow, Goku and Bulla looked up at him in shock. "That's your wife? But she's so small, and you're so big." Bulla stated, floating over and measuring herself with the small girl; finding that they were the same height as Fleur giggled. "It's alright, I can understand your confusion. A lot of people think that I'm his daughter." She explained, shaking both Bulla and Goku's hands, her small, fragile hands being extremely soft to the touch which somehow sent a calming feeling spreading throughout their entire bodies. "This is my older brother, Gazu." Shougen continued, motioning at the smaller man who had looked at them earlier, his strange blade humming as it moved through the air as he once again turned to look at them. "Goku and Bulla, was it? The pleasure is all mine. Although my name is Gazubiro, I insist that you call me Gazu." The man introduced, bowing to them. "I don't mean to be rude, but doesn't your hair stop you from seeing?" "I mean, it's completely covering your eyes." "Like all I see is a shadow, do you even have eyes?" Goku and Bulla rapidly asked, glancing at each other skeptically when Gazu laughed, refusing to answer.
Squinting, Goku scratched his head. "This is Ruby." Shougen stated, pointing at the girl with the long tail. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Sir. Goku. And you as well, Lady Bulla." She stated, curtsying respectfully. "Oh wow, you can just call me Goku." Goku replied, laughing as Bulla curtseyed in kind and Shougen growled. "You just gonna keep me for last, huh? So much for being best friends." the other small girl with the tail mumbled, leaping over Shougen's shoulders to nimbly land in front of Goku. "Nice to meet you Goku, I'm Tinkamenia; Shougen's best friend since childhood, but you can just call me Tink. Don't mind Shougen, he's a little gruff but he's just a big soft bear on the inside. You should see him when he transforms into a- gargh!" she gasped as Shougen grabbed her; his giant hand covering her entire face.
Her frantic cries were reduced to mumbles as she tried to claw her way free. "Just ignore her, please. Some people just don't know when to be quiet!" He stated, glaring at her. "You done?" he asked, sighing when Tink nodded. "Mmhm." She muttered sadly as she fell still. "Good, think before you speak next time." He ordered, placing her on his shoulders. "Kakarot! What the hell are you doing?" Vegeta yelled, making him flinch as he landed next to him. "Ah, come on Vegeta. You know that watching other people fight just makes me want to fight more. Besides, I just met some new friends." Goku answered, motioning towards the others. "This is Ruby, Tink, Fleur, Kaylin, Kaseaen, Gazu and Shougen." Rubbing his chin in thought, Shougen shook his head as he stared intently at Vegeta "I can see that, but are you aware that the Grand Priest is watching you." Vegeta stated, pointing up at the Grand Priest who was intently staring at them.
Waving at the Grand Priest, Goku laughed when he nodded in return before returning his attention to the fight below. "See, it's fine." "Whatever! What the hell are you staring at?" Vegeta asked, glaring up at Shougen who continued to stare at the Sayian prince. "What in Talos's name is going on? You look like Zagraeus too." "Who's Zagraeus?" Vegeta asked, shaking his head. "Apparently, he's the strongest fighter in their Universe. They think he's the strongest fighter there is." Bulla answered, smiling happily when Vegeta placed his hand on top of her head.
Looking at Goku, his eyes grew wide with intrigue. "The strongest there is, huh? That name doesn't sound like a Saiyan name though." Vegeta stated, causing Goku to shrug his shoulders. "I have never heard of a Saiyan before. All we know about Zagraeus's past is that his entire planet, along with its people was destroyed long ago. He's spent his entire life training to protect Vitania; our world which he now calls home." Gazu explained, staring straight past them. "He could've told more to Peiri, but that's all we know." Shougen agreed as Vegeta and Goku shared a glance at each other. "What about her? She's got a tail." Pan asked, pointing at Tink as she landed on Goku's shoulders. "A science accident. She drank one of Sturan's potions, it fused her DNA with that of a monkey." Gazu explained, causing Vegeta and Goku to shake their heads in shock.
Before they were able to talk any longer, the Grand Priest's voice echoed around them. "The first match is concluded; contender Cabba; of the Sixth is victorious. The second match shall consist of Gazubiro; of the thirteenth, and Lavender; of the ninth." Hearing the Grand Priest's words, Shougen looked down at his brother with a smile. "Go easy on him." Chuckling, Gazu patted Shougen's arm. "Of course." He replied, smiling up at him as he was teleported to the ring. "Your brother better be careful down there. Lavender has poison hands that mess you up if he hits you, it can even blind you." Goku explained, offering advice to his new friend as Shougen began to laugh.
Vegeta glared at him as Goku simply stared up at him in confusion. "Not to be rude, but you don't have to tell us how to handle ourselves in battle. We've seen more battles in our lifetime then any of you ever will. That, I can guarantee. Any who stand against us shall know the fury of Vitania… No, the fury of Universe thirteen." Shougen proudly announced as he pounded his chest with a large smile stretched across his face as he looked to the arena below.
His words left Goku and Vegeta with a sense of uneasiness and pure confusion as Pan and Bulla sat on the edge of the platform with Tink.