The Ripple Effect | Volume I

Chapter 9: Capsule Corporation


(Capsule Corporation)

The early evening sun sat mildly high in the sky, as the blue sky started to turn to a yellowish hue to signify that the sun is beginning to set. A giant building which was shaped in a half-sphere and was also similar to many other buildings in the area, sat on a block by itself. It was situated in the middle of the grass lot, surrounded by white picket fences that went all the way down the road. This was Capsule Corporation's Headquarters, also known as the residence of the Brief family.

In this world, paparazzi was a punishable offense. So, nobody would dare step onto Capsule Corporation unless it be for business reasons. The other plausible reason for guests to be present is a special invitation from the Brief family themselves. Although that's only what the public thinks. Nobody truly knows how the family operates their headquarters and their residence but the family themselves.

In reality, the Briefs didn't care.

The public scared themselves from ever stepping onto the property. All Dr. Brief had done was openly request that the people of the world respect their privacy. But because the headquarters acted as their place of residence as well, they were given residential services. The Briefs had the only residential space in the district, considering that they lived in the business district. There were no residential homes or apartment buildings for people to live in until you ventured downtown where most people constantly resided during every hour of every day of the week.

The business district of West City was mainly reserved for work and businesses. Most of the people that walked the streets would mostly be in professional attire, fit for white collared jobs and office work in the corporate buildings that surrounded the area. Although, downtown West City wasn't too far away from the business district.

Nansei Junior High School was about a 15–20-minute walk from Capsule Corporation which allowed Drawsah and Bulma to walk down one street and make it there swimmingly. Nansei is also about forty minutes away from downtown West City if you were to walk there. The school was situated in a high-income district and close to the inner city, meaning that most of the kids that went there had high financial status. It was the closest junior high school in the area to Capsule Corporation, so Dr. Brief thought it was best to send them somewhere close by. For simplicity's sake, it made things easier on Drawsah to attend.

Inside the giant yellow dome-shaped building, Drawsah was walking down a narrow flight of stairs with his hands in his pockets, wearing a white t-shirt and basketball shorts. The boy looked very relaxed; a stark contrast to the stiff and stoic image he had at school. He reached the bottom of the steps and walked down a hallway. Small robots designed for various purposes rolled down the hallway, which Drawsah paid very little mind to. One man and one woman in suits and ties walked down the hallway as well, heading in the opposite direction. They both had the Capsule Corp. logo on their suit jackets, signifying them as employees of Capsule Corporation.

The Capsule Corporation building's interior for the most part was a lot less spacious than it looked from the outside. There was one singular hallway that went all the way around the building in the middle. It connected to the front lobby where a woman in professional attire stood behind a receptionist's desk. She was most likely there for business purposes.

The extensive circling hallway would also connect to many other rooms along the first floor. There were some lounge areas, most likely catered to the employees that worked at the building. There was also a large kitchen filled with half a dozen chefs as well. The building had a small checkpoint where a fingerprint was needed to access the next level.

Drawsah walked in front of the checkpoint and put his thumb onto the scanning pad. He kept it there for around two seconds before reeling his hand back and shoving it into his pocket where he had it before. The scanner blinks green and the sliding doors opened, allowing him into another area seemingly only a select few had access to.

This was the residential side of the building for the Briefs. The hallway continued but this time, it was decorated with short tables along the wall and pictures of the family members. Many paintings and even larger photos were hung along the walls of the hallway. Drawsah walked by two glass doors that were on the inner wall and glanced through them. This was Capsule Corp's atrium, which only the Briefs had access to as it was on the residential side of the building. Inside it, was a column free, greenery area where dinosaurs, cats, dogs, and other animals roamed free. Right before the doors stood a patio which spanned out wide enough to fit eight car lengths on each side.

Drawsah strolled further down the hallway until he came to a room that had no door. It was a large living room. There was a large flatscreen television that was embedded into the wall and two long couches that sectioned off half of the room. In the middle of the couches stood a short but wide marble table where many remotes and cupholders lay. On the other side of the room, behind the couches, a smaller dining table that could seat six was located. A door that went outside the building and exited to the side of the house was placed beside the dining room table.

He walked into the room and sat down on the couch that faced directly in front of the television. Drawsah reached for the TV remote and turned the television on. It clicks on and Drawsah lays on his side as he got comfortable. He sank into the couch and relaxed, letting out a deep breath.

He slightly smiled. It was a long, tiresome, and annoying day… But at least I'm finally home.

A football game was displayed on the giant TV screen, and the volume was pretty loud. One team was sporting white kids who were representing West City The other team sported red kits, sporting Ginger Town. The score was West City 0-1 Ginger Town. Ginger Town was leading the game by one score.

West City brings the ball up into Ginger Town's side of the field. The lead player, or the striker passes it to his teammate who was a little deeper into the field which made the cheering of the crowd intensify. It was a home game in West City, taking place at Hiroki Sakai Stadium. It was on the other side of town and if you were to drive there, it'd take forty minutes. Drawsah probably could've attended but since it was a big event, he didn't want to be caught on any cameras. Flying there also wasn't an option considering that he's used up a lot more energy than he anticipated to use today.

The next forward drives down the field, intending to split the line of defenders with his three other teammates. Drawsah leans up fully with a glimmer in his eyes. The forward dribbles the ball past one of the defenders and takes an angle that positions the defender behind him, creating an open passing lane to the striker. He punts the ball towards his teammate with running room left, setting up the striker for a clear lane to take a shot.

"Alright!" Drawsah exclaimed in excitement. He raised a fist in triumph.

The noise of the crowd peaks inside the stadium. Anyone within a block's distance of the place could hear them clearly. Sprinting at his maximum speed, the striker places his pivot foot down in motion and pulls back his leg for a shot. He punts it towards the goal as everyone watches on in anticipation. The ball sails towards the goalie but the goalie put his hands down, looking straight up at the ball as the ball sails over the crossbar, missing the goal completely.

Drawsah kept the same excited position before, only difference was that his brow furrowed into deep wrinkles and his face dropped into a grim frown. A complete contrast from his emotions before.

He flopped back onto the couch. "You had one job man… One…!" he angrily uttered. It looks like Drawsah was a fan of West City's football club. But unfortunately, they haven't been playing well as of late. At least it was only the spring league. There wasn't a worthwhile cup to be earned in this league. It was usually for the less talented younger players to be evaluated for a final roster spot in the later months. That was when the premier league matches began.

Honestly, what did I expect…? We stink… I knew that much…

"Yoo-hoo~!"

Drawsah looked up and lost his grumpy attitude, glancing over to his right where the voice was coming from. "Oh. Hey mom," he quickly replied.

Mrs. Brief, also referred to as Bikini walked into the room with a small tray of glasses containing different beverages. "How was your first day of school, dear?" Bikini asked. She placed the tray on the table and took a seat next to her son. "Did you meet any new people?"

"Yeah," he answered. He grabbed a small glass of apple juice off the tray and took a sip. "But most of them were jerks."

Bikini put a hand up to her mouth in mild surprise. "Oh my! I see." She stood up from the couch and started strolling back to the hallway. Before she turned the corner, Bikini glanced halfway at Drawsah. "Bulma told me that she was the talk of the school," she commented in a worried tone. She put her hand on her cheek. "Is that really true?"

Drawsah's face turned up in disgust as his eyelids lowered. "I guess…I don't know," he said offhandedly. "She's notoriously known for telling the truth." He emphasized his point with air quotes. It looked like the topic of his sister irked him to a degree.

Bikini sighed. "Oh dear," she said slightly exasperated, "I know you two don't get along well but please do your best to keep your sister safe." She smiled at him.

"Don't worry, I will," Drawsah softly responded. Despite the petty quarrel Bulma and Drawsah had, he had kept her safety as his first priority.


(West City – Business District)

About a mile or two away from the Capsule Corporation building, Kitsutsuki is found walking along the sidewalk of one of the roads in the business district. She was wearing a loose-fitted gray t-shirt that was almost big enough to sleep in. Kitsutsuki was also wearing dark blue haram pants that tightened around the ankles, complimented with the same vans-styled tennis shoes she wore all day. This time, her hair was styled differently as she had put her hair into a messy bun about the size of her head.

The area she through in was a little bit smaller than the business district as it bordered the office buildings from high-end apartment buildings and smaller businesses. Most people who walked along the sidewalk were wearing much more casual attire. Everyone wasn't there for work because most people were residents.

Kitsutsuki glanced at her phone, which had a Maps app opened with directions for a certain address. The address posted at the top of the screen read WST 3338926 K. And the time right next to the address read twenty minutes left on her track.

The girl sighed. It was a hot day.

Another twenty minutes? I would've waited another hour if I knew it was gonna be this long… It's hot and I'm getting thirsty.

Kitsutsuki rubbed her brow with her forearm, wiping the sweat that started to form on her forehead. She walked by two people who strolled in the other direction, holding cold frozen drinks with an emblem of a frozen mountain on the sides of the cups. Glancing up in front of her, she notices a shop with a mounted store front sign that had the exact same logo as the cups did. Frozen Stone – Sno Cones & Frozen Drinks.

Exactly what I needed!

After noticing a moment of relief, she opened the handbag that was over her shoulder and pulled out a bit of cash. She counted over the amount she held and double checked the sum.

I think I should have enough for something.

Kitsutsuki casually walks into the shop while still being aware of her surroundings. Nobody seemed to have noticed her at all and if they did, she was ignored. She was a child by herself so she must live in the neighborhood with her parents would be the plausible guess.

About fifteen minutes later, Kitsutsuki walked out of the Frozen Stone store with a blue frozen drink in a tall clear plastic cup with a spherical cover. This was the thing that soothed her spirit, seeing as she started walking calmly on her route towards the destination she was travelling to. She quickly looks at her phone for a second to check the time remaining. It was still twenty minutes.

She took a sip of the slushie. Twenty more minutes… It'll be worth it in the end…


(Capsule Corporation)

The West City versus Ginger Town football match continued and Drawsah begrudgingly watched the match on the TV with a face of sorrow. The Score was West City 0-3 Ginger Town, and the clock was at 87:00 (eighty-seven minutes). It was almost over as they only had three minutes left on the clock.

Drawsah had taken a chip from a small snack-sized bag of chips he had in his hand and crunched on it slowly. His eyelids were low, and he looked like he had lost hours of his life watching something meaningless.

Light footsteps could be heard coming into the open room, but Drawsah didn't pay any mind to them. It was as if he couldn't even hear the footsteps at all. He sighed. Until suddenly, the television switched channels.

He jumped up in surprise, almost waking him up from his depressive gaze. "Hey! I was watching that…!" Drawsah darted his gaze to his right to see Bulma sprawled out on the couch besides him.

Bulma was wearing a full cotton notch-collar set of colorful pajamas. She wore matching slippers which she slipped off before laying on the couch.

"Oh please… You were torturing yourself!" Bulma snapped back, shooting a dirty look in his direction. "Find it in your heart to thank me for saving you. I wanna watch something good!"

Drawsah grumbled at her response, crossing his arms, and looking back at the television. "What do you know…?" he mumbled to himself.

"Honestly, I don't get the fun in rooting for a losing team. Just place your bet on the better team," Bulma commented.

"Shut up, you don't know anything about it," Drawsah quietly shot back.

Bulma sighed, rolling her eyes. "Whatever. I'd rather be oblivious than look stupid."

More footsteps came into the room and Drawsah looked over to see who it was. It was one of Dr. Brief's assistant scientists, who wore a white lab coat and glasses. He was a much younger man who looked to be in his mid-twenties. He wore black close-toed work shoes with wrinkly blue jeans and a green collared shirt. A similar outfit to Dr. Brief himself.

"Excuse me, Mr. Drawsah." The man had his hands behind his back to keep a professional stance. "Dr. Brief has requested your immediate presence at this moment. You'll find him in his laboratory," the scientist stated.

Drawsah hummed in curiosity as he stood up with his arms still crossed. Bulma didn't even spare him a glance. I hope he didn't hear about what happened at school… He walked over to the hallway and passed the man that gave him the message. "Thank you," Drawsah offhandedly said to the man. The man slightly bowed in response, as he departed into the other direction outside of the residential side of the hallway. The doors opened automatically for him so that must have meant that there was a pass needed to get in but not to leave.


Dr. Brief's laboratory was pretty sizeable. It stood on the first floor of the building on the residential side, only allowing access for himself and for his family. This was where the majority of prototype capsule engineering took place. And once it became safe enough for other scientists to work on, the production line and development sector moved to the labs that were on the front side of the building.

Inside his laboratory though, Dr. Brief was working on a digital project on his computer, seemingly constructing a line of code for an unnamed program. Eventually, a small door in the wall would open and Drawsah, who's size is really emphasized due to the sheer size of the room, walked through. Dr. Brief whips his head around to look at him with gleeful eyes.

"There you are, Drawsah! How are you feeling?" Dr. Brief asked his son.

"I'm fine," Drawsah replied. He let the door close behind him. "What'd you need me for?"

"I wanted to ask you about your limiters," Dr. Brief responded. "How did they hold up today? You didn't get into any trouble, did you?"

Drawsah made a sheepish face and walked towards the doctor, only stopping two feet away from him. "Not much," he slowly answered. "The kids at school are aggressive but I didn't get into any fights."

Dr. Brief looked pleased with the answer. "That's good. So, I take it that you likely haven't used your energy?" the man had finally asked.

Drawsah rubbed the back of his head and nervously chuckled.

"Well, I don't think I like the sound of that…" Dr. Brief admitted.

Drawsah sighed. "Only discretely. There's only one person that's skeptical. But I don't think they'll be questioning me about anything anymore," he stated. Drawsah crossed his arms as if he said something satisfactory, but Dr. Brief's expression didn't necessarily change.

The doctor held out his hands. "Let me see your limiters," he requested.

Drawsah didn't respond but only did exactly what Dr. Brief asked him to do. He raised his hands with his wrists projecting forwards, showing two metallic wristbands with percentage readings on each one. Dr. Brief inspected both of them. Not only the 23% reading that each ring displayed but its condition as well. The color was scratched slightly but the integrity of the bands themselves were still well intact.

Dr. Brief slowly hummed at his findings, twisting Drawsah's wrists around whenever need be. "You expended a lot of energy today…" the man finally commented. "You sure you kept a mask on your power?"

"I'm…" Drawsah started. His face looked disappointed as he thought about the people—or person that ended up figuring him out. "I'm not sure," he finished.

That Kitsutsuki girl was a lot more skeptical and cognitive than he thought and he severely underestimated her in that regard. Drawsah should've caught onto what she was trying to do from the start. At least that connected the dots to the reason why she treated him with so much distain. How much exactly did she see besides the moments she listed herself?

How far will she go to prove herself right? As long as she didn't have any proof, his ability security would be safe, just as long as he did a better job masking those abilities. The only thing he was concerned about was figuring out how far she'd go to expose him in a vulnerable scenario. He wouldn't get caught off guard again.

Dr. Brief sighed at that answer. He let go of Drawsah's wrists and casually took a seat in the chair he was sitting in before. His arms were crossed as he leaned forward to match Drawsah's height.

"You have to remember to keep your ability use in check," he stated. "You know the risks of using them in public, so it's very important that you don't expose yourself. Was it your passive abilities somebody figured out or was it your voluntary abilities?"

"Passive," Drawsah quickly answered. "She told me what she thought before I left."

"Oh?" Dr. Brief looked at him quizzically. "And what was that?"

Drawsah paused in thought for a moment. "She said she believed that I was a 'superhuman' and that she'd figure me out herself."

Dr. Brief lightly chuckled. "Well, I'm sure you know what that means, don't you?" he asked Drawsah. The boy looked at him questioningly. "It means you have to try to restrict the use of your energy as much as you can for as long as you can. This means you'll have to get used to suppressing your passive abilities even with your limiters on."

"Wait," Drawsah exclaimed. "But what if people get in trouble? Am I allowed to do something about it, or do I have to act like I can't do anything?" Drawsah looked tense.

The short man lightly smiled though. "Well, that's a different story," he explained. He saw Drawsah's face falter a little. "I recommend that if you want to help people using your abilities, you use them responsibly and subtly. Don't go off looking for trouble, alright?"

Drawsah's face immediately lightened up after hearing that. "I won't," he said. But then it looked like Drawsah had an idea as his expression lightened up. "By the way," Drawsah pointed out, "I was wondering if there was a way for me to get used to not wearing these limiters? There isn't really a place for me to practice, and I didn't want to risk causing damage or hurting other people."

Dr. Brief hummed in thought for a moment, scratching his chin. Drawsah watching him brainstorm curiously. "I'll think of some way for you to train. Don't you worry about a thing! You have an ability that should be used for the greater good!" Dr. Brief exclaimed, putting his hand on Drawsah's shoulder. "It's a massive responsibility, you know."

"Right," Drawsah replied. He nodded in agreement.

The short doctor smiled. "Alright, son." Dr. Brief ruffled the boys spiky and naturally messy hair. "Go on about your day, I've still got plenty of work to do today."

"Sure thing," Drawsah said. He turned around and jogged towards the door and opened it. "See you later!" The boy waved his hand at the doctor before proceeding through the exit.

Dr. Brief sighed at his departure. "What a handful…" he quietly said to himself. He sheepishly smiled at the thought of the boy.


(WST 3338926 K.)

Kitsutsuki stood at the front of the Capsule Corp building, watching as people walked by, through the doors and out in various different business-like outfits. She didn't seem intimidated or interested in those people at all. She looked down at her phone which read that she had completed the trip, offering her the choice of either sharing her ETA or ending the route. She chose the latter.

She looked up at the white sign that covered the front open gate of the Capsule Corporation building. The white fences that spanned across the property had even taller green bushes and palm trees that were right behind them, creating a buffer of privacy that was beyond the large gaps between the fences. Kitsutsuki took a long sip of the slushie that was about halfway finished.

The girl pocketed her phone and smacked her face with her free hand on her cheek, putting off the few people that walked by her slightly. C'mon, Kitsutsuki! This next step is crucial! I'll never have proof if I back down now… She opened her eyes, which became determined.

Kitsutsuki took a deep breath. "Let's go," she whispered to herself. She started strolling towards the wide front doors of the building which a few people would either go in and out of. Seeing that most of the people that went through were young adults in professional clothes that ranged from suits and ties to collared shirts and khaki pants, she started to feel out of place and stuck out like a sore thumb.

She looked out to the yard of the oddly large dome of a building and watched a few yard workers tend to the bushes and flowers that went around. It was a short walk to the front door obviously and once she got there, she squeezed into the building and stood off to the side of the door once she started to look a little lost.

Kitsutsuki groaned. Maybe I…bit off a little more than I could chew. She noticed that there was a receptionist desk in the middle of the lobby she stood in. The lobby was sparsely populated with a little less than a few employees in the room. Maybe she'd be able to ask the lady at the front.

She went up to the lady at the desk directly, seeing as nobody was in line to speak with her.

The receptionist looked down at Kitsutsuki with a quizzical expression. What's this little girl doing here? She looks lost. "Good afternoon, how may I help you?" she asked Kitsutsuki.

"Does a kid named Drawsah Brief live here?" she quickly asked the woman. She was as direct as possible so as to not waste much time, as she didn't have much time at all.

"Do you have a name?" the woman asked Kitsutsuki.

Kitsutsuki frowned slightly before answering, "Kitsutsuki Fujiwara."

The receptionist went to her computer and started typing on the keyboard quickly. "Kitsu…tsuki…Fujiwara…" the woman slowly said to herself to match with her typing speed. She glanced at Kitsutsuki without fully facing away from the screen. "It looks like The Doctor's son hadn't put your name on the guests list, so I can't ring you in. Could you verify the way your name is spelled?"

Kitsutsuki clicked her tongue in annoyance. I should've thought this through better…


Back in the living room, we find Bulma and her mother, Bikini, sitting on the couch while Bulma sat on the floor directly in front of her with a big towel covering her neck and torso. Bikini was seemingly doing Bulma's hair, but Bulma didn't look pleased. Bulma was using her phone with her free hand as her other was laying on the ground. She saw that a verification notification popped up at the top of her phone screen. Bulma tapped on it.

The camera showed the front lobby of Kitsutsuki at multiple angles. There seemed to be a camera in every corner of the room and one fifth one right above the receptionist's desk to record anything that was in front of her and the door. Bulma quickly recognized her as the girl she saw Drawsah speaking with earlier this morning.

Bikini peeked at Bulma's phone while brushing out her straight hair that was now completely let down. "Were you expecting visitors, Bulma?" she asked her daughter.

"No," Bulma bluntly responded. It was out of character for Bulma to look at the front desk notice in so much detail, which most likely prompted the question. "It looks like one of Drawsah's friends."

"Oh, how sweet!" Bikini exclaimed. "Drawsah didn't tell me about any friends of his!"

Bulma irritably rolled her eyes. It seemed like anything and everything was getting on her nerves today. "It's not a big deal," she dismissed. "He's not even here to greet her in person…" Bulma taps the "YES" option on her phone when prompted whether or not they expected a visitor. She doubted that Drawsah invited her in but if the girl walked all the way over to their house, she must be there for a good reason. And that good reason was a reason to irritate her brother some more in any way possible. She smirked at the possibility.

"Excuse me, dear!" Bikini said from behind her, confusing Bulma. "I'll go greet our guest myself." She stood up leaving Bulma in her straight-haired mess with hair clips in awkward places. "It'll only be a few minutes!"

The azure-haired girl watched her leave. She looked annoyed to the point where she wanted to scream. But she didn't. She frowned and didn't acknowledge her mother at all, grumbling. Nothing is going the way I want today…!


End of Chapter Nine.

A/N:

I figured I should add a lot more exposition to the way they lived as damn near nothing was provided in the series. I also tried to make Capsule Corporation as a business make more sense commercially. The only time we ever see that happen is when Trunks was left running the business in GT and that was barely touched upon.

Dr. Brief never paid attention to the financial side apparently at all and only noticed that he was the richest person in the world when Chichi pointed it out in the Battle of Gods movie. The building was canonically the headquarters of the biggest business in the world that apparently didn't have much management going on.

I'll definitely be touching upon it more in the next chapter. (i know this one was so long because of that exposition lol—was still fun to write tho) Now that it's the start of the summer for me, I'll be writing a lot more and on schedule so chapters could be getting longer. Wish you guys have a great start to the work week!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter and hope that you'll be back with me for the next update!