Daily Life With A Saiyan Teenager

by AquaticPhantom407

Goten and Trunks are constantly left behind when it comes to big fights. Tired of being the weaklings of the group, they decide it's time to catch up to the others. Meanwhile, a new evil approaches intending to wipe out all Saiyans and any race he deems too dangerous to be left alive. After an altercation with the monster, Goten found himself sent to another world. Can he get back?

9. Chapter 8: Beta 1

Daily Life with A Saiyan Teenager Chapter 8

Beta 1

Location: Parsley City 3 years ago

Despite the times, Parsley city was a relatively peaceful spot… at least when compared to everywhere else in the world. However, that didn't mean nothing bad every happened. Right now, the city was under attack, but not by the usual suspects. This time they were common thugs, and they were after something very specific. Criminal organizations usually robbed banks, killed innocent people, or caused meaningless destruction for the fun of it. In fact, they usually did all of the above. However, this particular gang was in the business of human trafficking, and they had a very specific target. The son of a researcher who had been murdered recently. He had gone on a journey to Korin's tower as he heard rumors of a bean that could heal any wound. He wanted to study them and see if there was a way that it could somehow be replicated. Unfortunately, his life was cut short as he was shot and killed by an infamous criminal. To make matters worse, their house was burned down along with his inheritance. The man's wife was still alive, but she was under protection in a bunker inside the City she lived in. As for her son, he ran away from home for one reason and one reason alone. Revenge. At present, the boy found himself in a bit of a pinch.

"Hey get outta here brat! I owe your old man for screwing me over all those years ago! You can make it up by showing yourself! I bet you'd fetch a fine price!" Said one of the thugs.

The young man hugged the wall tightly while holding something in his hand. He may have been a rich kid at some point, but he was no stranger to fistfights. However, these men were armed, carrying guns, rocket launchers, and flame throwers. He knew he didn't stand a chance. On top of that, they had hover cars and he came to this city on foot. It was only a matter of time before they found him.

'I need to get out of here and fast! They've already overwhelmed the police, and I doubt they'll call backup in time! I need to think fast!' He thought.

"Alright men! Let's play a little game. The first to find the brat gets 20% of the reward!" Said the boss.

Cheers erupted, and the boy clenched his fist as he knew this was a problem he couldn't get out of. His father's money wasn't going to save him this time, and his mother was too far away to do anything. He was officially screwed.

'Mother, I'm sorry I was such an awful son. I got into fights and acted up in school because I wanted my father to give me attention. I like to think I got better in high school, but I still saw people as inferior to me even if I never outright said so. Over time, I realized we were all struggling, but I still loathed them because they had what I didn't. They had real friends, and yet other boys were envious of me. Relationships weren't real either. Most relationships were always about my money. However, you were one of the few people in my life who saw me as more than just a spoiled brat. I guess that's a given since you are my mother. You were a good one though and because of my stupid decision, you're about to lose another family member… I'm sorry. I guess I'll be joining father soon.'

*CRASH*

An explosion was heard, and when the blonde teenager took a look, it was very much still lingering. Many of the gang's hover cars were caught in the explosion and many of them died.

"FIRE IN THE HOLD!" A woman shouted.

The next thing the former rich kid saw was a kid around his age, with brown spikey hair moving around at high speeds and dodging multiple bullets. He'd punch one grunt and would zip to the next as if he were as fast as lightning. In fact, that may have not even been an exaggeration. Many of these men were bigger than him, yet they all fell in the same manner.

"You should train more. That really wasn't fun." Said the other boy.

Finally, a large and buff man in a blue mohawk came in on a motorcycle. To the blonde boy, the man seemed as if he belonged more with the thugs chasing him, but he supposed that the saying 'don't judge a book by its cover' had some merit. The man jumped off the motorcycle, into the air and as he was airborne, he pulled out two guns and did a flip. "HEY! DON'T HOG ALL THE FUN! LEAVE SOME FOR ME!" He yelled before opening fire on many of the goons, however, it was like nothing happened. The man landed on his feet and crouched down before doing a pose with his guns, and in true anime fashion, all the men that he dropped like flies. Now there was one person, and it was the big boss. He was very muscular and he had red spikey hair.

"Alright, punk! We can do this the easy way or the hard way! We don't have to bring ya back alive, but if you make this easy, we won't kill ya!" Said the woman to the boss of the gangsters as she closed the distance between herself and the boss of the gang. As she did, she stepped over the corpses of his men, causing him to grit his teeth in anger. The blonde teen now knew what she looked like. She had flowing blonde hair that matched his own in color, a red ribbon in said hair, a green tank top, and beige shorts.

"Heh, do you think y'all are heroes or some shit? You're just like me, a wanted criminal! Even if you kill me or turn me in, you ain't getting no Zeni, so why don't you turn around and leave? I'll even give you some of the reward for catching that boy!"

'SHIT!' The boy thought.

"You think I'd fall for that dumbass? You'd just shoot me in the back. Besides, I got plans for you!"

"Damn it… You know, you're not a bad-looking woman. I'd say you're actually pretty hot. But now…. YOU'RE ABOUT TO BE MUCH HOTTER!" The man opens his jacket revealing a ton of bombs strapped to him. "Move a muscle and we all go boom! Now, turn around like the good girls and boys you are!"

"You crazy ass bitch!" Said the woman.

"That's my line, but I like 'em crazy! I'd offer for you to be my girl, but that ain't the way it's gonna be. You killed my squad, so I gotta pay you all back!"

Before he knew it, there was a hole in his chest.

"Not before I pay you back!"

The blonde boy walked out of his hiding spot and was holding a ray gun that he aimed at the man's heart. He still didn't know a lot about the weapon, but he knew how to fire it. It was overall a better weapon than what that gang had, but it still would have been suicide to walk right in. After all, a single man with a pistol would lose to a thousand men wielding swords.

"Y-YOU!" Those were his last words before he fell to the ground dead.

"How does it feel to fall below my feet, lowly criminal? Your kind are scum and the world's better off without you!" Said the teenager as he walked up to his tormentor." He said as he walked up to the corpse. Two members of the group aimed their guns at him, and the blonde one spoke.

"Kid that was a real dangerous stunt ya pulled there. If you hit the bomb, we would have all died."

"That was the point! I can't trust anyone! Besides you're a criminal too! You're scum just like him!"

"What did you call me punk?!" She said

In response, the blonde-haired boy pointed his blaster at her and smirked. "You heard me hag."

"HAG?!" The woman began firing near his feat and he comically started to dodge it. "WHAT WAS THAT YA LITTLE TWERP?!"

"WAIT, WAIT, I'M SORRY!" The blonde teen screamed.

"That will teach you to disrespect your elders!" said the lady.

"Woah, you're as energetic as ever Launch!" Said a young boy with brown spikey hair.

"I may be in my 50s, but I'm still young!" She said

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that." Said the ragged man with the blue mohawk.

"What was that?!" The woman now named Launch exclaimed.

"N-Nothing boss! Anyway, what are we going to do with his kid? Trace's gang was after him for some reason and he's got a pretty rare weapon. You don't see ray guns every day. I say we knock him out and steal it!"

"Hey, I'm right here you know…" Said the blonde teen.

"NO! That's an awful thing to do! Taking his weapon is as good as killing him! Said the brown-haired boy.

"Yeah, well tough luck. It's better for him than us! That's just the way the world is now!" Said the mohawk man.

"We should just let him go! He poses no threat to us!" Said the brown-haired boy.

"He's not threatening until he shoots us in the back!" The mohawk man replied.

"Enough!" Launch exclaimed. She then turned her attention to the blonde kid. "You there, you're either surrendering your weapon or you're coming with us. We ain't in the business of babysitting, but I promise we'll take you somewhere safe, and maybe getcha back to your parents."

The kid went over his options in his head. 'Just because they got rid of my pursuers, doesn't mean they're on my side. That blonde one's apparently a criminal, and she acts like one too. Still, going with them is my best shot at finding him! There are only 4 of them, but they took down an entire armed gang so they could easily disarm me! I never used a gun in my life before I found this ray gun lying outside of Ginger Town. Better play it safe!'.

"Alright, you win. I will go with you, but what I said still stands. I intend to join your little gang of misfits, and perhaps we can assist in each other's goals."

"Kid, you ain't joining our squad. We've seen shit that would traumatize you for life, and you're a liability. Our only goal right now is survival, and you being with us only jeopardizes everyone." Said the blonde-haired woman.

"I have a strong enough weapon to be of good use to you."

"So what? A good weapon doesn't make a good fighter. It was smart to wait until we beat everyone to finish off the boss, but for all you know, we could have been after you too. Oh, yeah that reminds me. Don't go telling people you killed him or there's going to be problems, you hear me?"

"Y-Yes ma-am," Said the teen.

"By the way, you got a name kid?"

"I do have a name, but perhaps it's better that you don't know. That group of losers chased me down for a reason, and I don't want you to get any ideas. Please, just call me Reaper from now on for I will be the last sight that our enemies see before they are sent to hell."

"I already told ya, you ain't joining!" She yelled before composing herself "Well, the name is Launch. We've been traveling to find a safe place to survive for the time being."

"Oh, we're introducing ourselves?! Well, my name's Kashu! I'm so happy to see someone around my age! I trained under the turtle hermit school, and after I left, I did some training on my own. I traveled around the world and then I found Launch and her gang. I saw them putting the hurt on bad guys harming the innocent, and I figured a group like that could use my strength, and I wasn't a fan of traveling alone, so I joined them!"

"Well, I wasn't expecting to introduce myself, but I used to run with the Red Shark Gang until everything went to shit. I used to be nothing but a common criminal and then I had to change my view of the world to survive. We thought we were hot shit until we got a taste of our own medicine. I wouldn't be surprised if I was the only one to survive. Anyway, I'm Dagger." Said the man with the blue Mohawk. He grinned and pointed his thumb to himself.

"So in other words you're a waste of oxygen no different than those who you jusst killed? A prime example of how justice does not prevail! If it did, you'd be dead in the streets!" Said Reaper.

"Hey, don't disrespect Mr. Dagger! He used to be a bad person, but he turned over a new leaf!"

"No, Kashu, it's fine. After what I've done, I deserve it, but now I have a role to fulfill and that's making sure this band of idiots survives."

"HEY!" Both Launch and Kashu exclaimed.

"It's just like you said, justice doesn't prevail in this world. We didn't kill those punks because we're a bunch of goody-two-shoes, justice-loving heroes, we killed them 'cause there was a price on their boss's head, and the reward would allow us to eat good."

'That Launch lady was also criminal according to that gang boss. Well, I know not to mess with her, but her little group could be useful in fulfilling my goals. Perhaps it's best if I play nice for now even if they are a group of thugs who deserve to die. They won't live long, but then again, I won't either if I continue alone.' Reaper Thought.

"Fine… Let's just go." Said Reaper.

Reaper would travel with them for a little while until they reached the next city that wasn't in complete ruins. It was a journey that lasted a week. Over the course of that week, Reaper had got to know a little more about the group. It would turn out they all lost something and were in ways similar to him. Dagger was by all means a terrible person who killed and stole from innocent people for no other reason than his own pleasure, and then everything he had was stripped away from him, just like he had stripped everything away from other people. Dagger had no past trauma or anything like that to become how he was. He was simply a big bully who knew people feared him for that fact and took advantage of that. What started from beating up kids on the playground(When he was a kid himself), evolved into pushing down elderly people, and shoving people into lockers, and eventually these minor acts of terrorism turned into serious crimes such as murder and theft. Everyone including Dagger himself knew he wasn't a good person, but after he lost his gang, he changed. This isn't to say he suddenly became a good person, but he became less brash and seemingly concerned for the well-being of the group. It was unknown if he ever felt bad for his previous crimes, and the only person who openly admitted to actually liking him in the group was Kashu. Launch claimed she only kept him around as a necessity, but Kashu didn't believe that. Speaking of Kashu, Reaper saw him as an odd case. His life was like his own but worse, and yet he was always smiling. Around 4 years ago, Kashu lost both his parents at the age of 11, and for a while, he had to fend for himself. He came to the Turtle Hermit School where he learned martial arts, and left 3 years later. He began traveling alone with no guidance before he found Launch, and Dagger who at the time was only a captive of Launch. He was wanted dead for killing a member of a mercenary guild when he was with the Red Shark Gang. At this point, Dagger was done with life. He couldn't care less if Launch killed him. He lost his gang, and for years he was left with nothing. The only thing that kept him going was fighting against his would be assassins, but he didn't fight back to survive, he fought back to relive all the shootouts he had in the past, but overtime, he got tired of that. Eventually that guild of mercenaries hired Launch. As Launch was about to shoot him, Kashu intervened because he believed that Dagger was no longer a threat to anyone and he hated meaningless deaths. However Launch told Kashu she couldn't leave the man unpunished. They went back and forth until Kashu brought up both of their flaws and how Dagger could make up for them. Kashu told her that since he didn't have the heart to kill, and she could sneeze at any time, Dagger would be a great addition to the team. When Reaper heard this, he remembered how Kashu never killed any of the criminals. On that day when Reaper was running from that gang, it was only Launch and Dagger that killed them. Reaper saw him as a fool for this. Speaking of Launch, Reaper saw her as the oddest person he ever met. At some points, her hair would change to blue and she'd become a lot sweeter, and was not able to commit violent acts. Instead she'd rather communicate with nature in this state. Reaper didn't like it, but he understood why she needed Dagger. Kashu was pretty much a superhuman, but he was far too merciful while Dagger was a ruthless fighter. Kashu was much stronger than the average human, but he was far from indestructible. If a building fell on him, he'd most likely die, but he was almost always unaffected by guns and being rammed into by cars. Launch needed them in the case that she sneezed in the middle of a shootout. Reaper hated Dagger but agreed with how he dealt with foes, and the opposite was true for how felt about Kashu. On the way there, it became dark so they set up camp in the wilderness. Of course, since they were the same age, Kashu and Reaper shared a tent.

"Kashu, what's wrong with Launch? After we left West City, the place I fled from I saw her going on a drunk rant at a random store about this Tien guy, but then she sneezed and her personality completely changed! She became so nice and her hair turned blue!" Said Reaper.

"Launch has a condition that's sort of like multi-personality disorder, but it changes her entire appearance and happens every time she sneezes. She's powerful on her own, but if she sneezes at a bad time, she'd be completely defenseless. That's why she needs Dagger and myself."

"I've heard of that disorder but nothing like that. Speaking of Launch, why did you join her little group? I noticed back in Parsley City that you didn't kill anyone. Based on what I've seen from you, I know you're capable, so why didn't you finish them off?"

"Well, I guess I just didn't need to. I hate the idea of killing people and would never do it unless I felt it was absolutely necessary. This isn't the first time this subject has come up either. The truth is I don't have the heart to kill, but I understand when it needs to be done. That's why I'm with Launch and Dagger. We all have our flaws, but we balance each other out ya know?"

"You're a naïve fool if you think scum like those criminals are worth sparing, but at the same time, you're a much better person than those two. Why would a goody two shoes like you, be with them? Surely you could have found a better group with better people."

"Well, you know I lost both of my parents, right? When that happened, the people around me did their best to take care of me. Of course, I was still sad, but it gave me the will to move on with my life. Then I remembered the story of the hero I admire so much, so I joined the Turtle Hermit School to be just like him! A person who defends the weak! Launch and Dagger may not be the nicest people around, but they aren't terrible people! Dagger was at some point, but I can tell he's changed!"

"What rubbish. You aspire to be a hero of justice, yet you allowed Dagger's misdeeds to go unpunished? Make no mistake, I understand why you need him now, but I read up on his former gang, and they had no qualms against killing women or children! Even if he has changed, he deserves death for what he's done! Miss Launch may have been a criminal, but as far as I know, she never did such a thing! Tell me, what makes you think he won't repeat his actions? Even if he is repentant, then don't his victims deserve justice too?"

"Maybe, but I'd say he's suffered enough. We all have. None of us are the same people we used to be and no matter how we started, we're all living in the same hell now and we need each other. I'm sure you've heard this before, but killing someone out of revenge for killing another won't bring them back nor will it give you the satisfaction you want out of it. There are legitimate reasons to kill, but if you do it in pursuit of vengeance, you'll only end up losing yourself. Dagger has committed unforgivable crimes, I won't deny that. But all killing him would do is rob a changed man of a chance to rectify his atone for his sins. If Dagger were to be arrested, that would be justice, but he's too valuable to the team. If someone challenges him to duel to the Death, Dagger always accepts. He says he just wants to find someone who can kill him in a fair gun duel, but I think he wants to die because he feels guilty for everything he's done."

"Then how about the monsters who killed your parents? Do you not wish to exact revenge upon them?! Don't you hate them for what they did?!"

"I do hate them and if I had the power, I would swallow my sense of morality to kill them. However, it wouldn't be to avenge my family. My parents would never stand for me wasting my life trying to avenge them. No... I'd kill them to return the world to the way it was before, and so everyone could smile again."

"Then what about me?! Perhaps you are satisfied with allowing evil to run free without suffering consequences for their misdeeds but I'm not! While you may have been taken care of by your community, nobody wanted to help the rich kid who had it all and didn't have to deal with the same problems as everyone else! I had my mother, but our inheritance literally went down in flames! We both survived, but we ended up with nothing! Even in the bunker, we had to deal with constant mistreatment!" Reaper went quiet for a few seconds. "I suppose I wasn't a great son to either of my parents. Back in middle school, I used to always act up. I'd get into fights and if things didn't go my way, I'd use my wealth to get what I wanted. I thought my wealth made me invisible but the truth was I wasn't shit. A part of it was out of hope that I would get my father's attention, but admittedly, I was on a power trip. I more or less stopped this behavior in high school, but my reputation was impossible to lose. I tried making amends, I really did. However, they despised me not just for who I was in the past, but because I was popular with girls and because they thought I had everything easy. In turn, I hated them back and I started to look down on them. Even though I never went out of my way to say anything to outright antagonize them, I still thought of them as lower than me. By high school, I understood that I was nothing more than a privileged brat mooching off his father's earnings, but I didn't have the one thing I truly wanted. A genuine relationship with another person that wasn't based on my status. For all my life, most of my relationships almost always came down to my money except for my parents. I may have deserved their ire for my past mistakes, but my poor mother did not. She literally lost her husband and instead of offering her words of comfort, people mocked her... and yet, I'm no better… I left my mother alone so I could get revenge for the man she loved. A man who in all likelihood wouldn't want to be avenged and yet… I can't sit idly by knowing his murderer is still out there evading his punishment. I won't go back until my father's honor is restored!"

"You had it rough, haven't you? You acted up, but you were secretly crying for affection. You may have done bad things back in middle school, but from your story, it looks like you tried to change. I didn't know you back then, but it doesn't seem like you're entirely to blame for how you were treated in high school. The other students were wrong to make assumptions about you. I don't know the full context of what you did in middle school, but I doubt it was anything worth holding a grudge for that long. Do you regret leaving your mother? Well, go back! It's not too late for you. You can still go to school, and one day when the world is saved, you can make a future for yourself even if you're no longer rich! I mean look at me, I came from a poor family and yet I'm content with my life! I'm sure you could do even better than me! We didn't know each other for very long, but I still consider you a friend and the fact that you aren't rich anymore doesn't change that, nor would I care if you still were rich. However, because I consider you a friend, I want what's best for you, and sticking with us isn't what you need."

"It's like I said, I can't go back! She's all the way back in South City, and I already come so far, and I've already killed some of that guy's men before you guys came along and saved me. I don't have a boat or a plane. I left by sneaking on a ship that was heading toward the West Capital for business purposes. I traveled all the way to the village in the Sacred Land of Korin, but I wasn't there to study some beans, I was there to find out where my dad's killer was. The villagers didn't know, so I left in peace. After I left, I ran into wild animals and bandits, but I managed to get to ginger town. Unfortunately, Ginger Town was under attack by those unstoppable monsters. I fled Ginger town and on my way to Central City, I found this ray gun lying around." Reaper flaunted his weapon. "It was unlike anything I had ever seen before, but I took it just in case I ran into trouble, and when I came to Central City, it did. Central City had also been attacked by 'them', and a crime boss took advantage of the situation and robbed a bank. I happened to pass by them and one of the men recognized me due to my resemblance to my father. The crime boss had a grudge against my father. They both went to the same college, but my father was successful but he failed and turned to a life of crime. He's held a grudge ever since, and when he found out I was near, he wanted to sell me to someone to someone as a slave. I managed to lose them for a bit and I fled to Parsley City. The people were kind, but a week later, they managed to find me, and that's where we met."

"Wow, that's such a cool story! I'd like to go on an adventure someday and travel all around the world. It's too bad I can do that because of these times." Kashu said sadly.

"The journey was anything but fun. It was idiotic on my part to go to such extreme lengths to kill one deranged psychopath. I know how stupid and selfish I'm being, but I simply cannot rest until his killer is gone! This is a group of bounty hunters, right? Well if I join, I can be of great use to you! And I can earn money for my mother! It's a win-win scenario, wouldn't you say? Please forward this with Lady, Launch, for I'm sure you could use the extra firepower. If I die, then my dying wish is that you use my share to make sure my mother is okay."

"Well, that's a much better motivation than revenge. I'd feel wrong to deprive you of an opportunity and this IS a good way to make money, but before I say anything, are you sure this is what you want? After all, there are other less dangerous ways to make money."

"Even if I did that, I'd still be in danger. My father was a good man, but even a good person has his enemies. Some for good reasons, others for bad, but regardless of whether or not their reasons for hating my father are justified, they're still after me for me, so if all my options are dangerous, I might as well choose the one that makes the most money right? And as a plus, I get to stick it to the types of people I hate the most."

"If you don't mind me asking, who exactly where you looking for? The person who killed your father I mean."

"He was an infamous Sniper known as Van Zant who also came from a rich family like me. He figured that since the world was ending, he might as well go out with a bang. People like him should have never been born! I heard he'd been detained before, yet he got out by bribing police officers! This is why I don't believe in imprisoning criminals for vile actions such as murder, I believe they should be executed on sight!

"That guy has a hit on him! He's hard to find and he's kind of dangerous since he's apparently pals with the guys responsible for all the chaos in the world, but I'm sure we'll get around to kicking his sorry butt someday!" Said Kashu.

To this, Reaper actually smiled. "Thank you, Kashu. I mean that. I've said thank you out of formality, but this was one of the few times I genuinely meant it."

"Of course, man! I'll make sure to send him away for good! In any case, you up for a spar in the morning? Let's see if you're actually bounty hunter material."

Reaper confidentially grinned. "Very well. If you insist."

"ALRIGHT, I CAN'T WAIT! Goodnight Reaper! I'll see you in the morning!"

"Hmph. Goodnight, Kashu."

In the morning, Kashu and Reaper had a spar and it went about as expected. With Reaper on the ground. Kashu was as fast as lightning itself, could survive getting run over by a semi-truck with minor injuries, and was a decent martial artist too.

"Ugh, damn it…" Said Reaper.

"Hahaha, don't feel too bad kid! Nobody can beat Kashu in one one-on-one! The kid's undefeated!" Dagger laughed.

"You stay silent! I didn't ask for the opinion of a rodent." Said Reaper.

"A rodent am I? Well, I must be one handsome rodent. Ain't I handsome Launch?"

"Sure, if you're attracted to roadkill."

"Hey! You take that back!"

"Don't think I didn't hear you cracking jokes about my age!"

"O-Of course not Ma'am" Dagger stood still like an obedient puppy.

"Whatever, that's not important right now. Ah heard something interesting. "Reaper, I hear you're still trying to join my bounty hunter squad. Sorry to tell you, but it ain't that easy. Kashu vouched for you, but his word alone ain't enough! Normally I wouldn't give you this chance, but I heard about your situation and it wouldn't sit with me to feed you to the wolves! I'll teach you how to fight so you can defend yourself, and maybe you can stick with us for a bit, but once we make enough money, we're sending you back, ya hear?

"Understood!" Said Reaper obediently. 'Even if I can't stay here forever, that's fine! If Lady Launch trains me, I'll be strong enough to hunt down Van Zant on my own!"

3 months later.

A lot happened since Reaper had begun training with Launch and her squad. For one, a great hero had passed away recently. He was allegedly killed alongside a giant dragon. Reaper thought that they may have been partners. Both Launch and Kashu were deeply saddened by it. Reaper understood why both the blue-haired Launch and Kashu were upset, but he couldn't understand why the blonde-haired version of Launch was so upset. Reaper had heard that ever since someone special to her died, the blonde version of Launch hardened her heart to the point where she didn't shed a tear when every member of her last squad died. However, the tough Woman who trained him for 3 months cried for a seemingly random man. The more Reaper thought of it, the more he realized that perhaps Launch knew the gentleman personally. After all, she didn't talk much about her past. He didn't pry as though he wasn't an official member of the group, he stayed with them and even aided them with catching or killing targets. He still didn't like Dagger, but he no longer tried to antagonize him. He would have liked to kill him, but the entire group and perhaps the entire guild would turn on him and he'd never get his revenge on Van Zant. Over the course of 3 months, Dagger had become like an uncle to him. As for Kashu, they were friends but that didn't mean they always got along. Instead of going back, Reaper ended up becoming a full-fledged bounty hunter. Launch and her team were in reality, a group of freelancers, so Reaper followed in their footsteps and did a few jobs on his own, but he still visited them from time to time. At present, Reaper still wanted to join Launch's squad. She didn't want him to become a bounty hunter but had already proven himself as an assassin for hire. He went exclusively after criminals and had a reputation for taking no prisoners. Eventually, Launch gave in and let him join. His first mission was to go on a duo mission with Kashu. Kashu was a trusted member, and for Reaper, this would prove his worth. Now they're next target was an apparent female serial killer that for some reason, the police couldn't deal with.

Orange City

They found the woman in a bookstore. The interior was pretty much destroyed and books were scattered all over. The place was pretty much abandoned but this one lady decided to stick around. She was sitting at a table alone while drinking a coffee that she brewed herself. She was also reading an article about King Piccolo Junior. She was curious since it was like the world had forgotten about him. She was soon confronted by Reaper and Kashu.

"Alright miss, you'll have to come with us. You have a bounty on your head, and you have to pay for the brutal murder of hundreds of innocent people." Said Kashu.

"Why even give a warning? We should kill her and be done with it!" Said Reaper.

"W-Wait! You're wrong! I never did any of that! I'm just a scapegoat for a corrupt police chief! He's the one who orchestrated all their deaths!"

"And you killed them for him?" Kashu questioned.

"Oh, heavens no! I could never kill a person! Chief Stone has a good reputation, but he's an awful man behind the scenes! He's responsible for everything! He'll find people he doesn't like and will set them up to be arrested and they'll never be seen again!"

"You think we'd believe that?! You think you are some sly vixen, don't you? Well too bad your tricks don't work on me!"

"Wait, let's hear her out!" Said Kashu.

"I-I don't have any evidence to prove it, and he has the entire town under his thumb! Ask around, and surely, you'll find a few people who will confirm what I'm saying! If no one says anything, then feel free to kill me. Dying would be far better than being anywhere near that disgusting boar of a man!"

"I want to believe you miss, but there's a chance that you're tricking us and will run as soon as we leave. My friend Reaper here is in dire need of Zeni, but we aren't so blinded by greed that we'd hurt a potentially innocent person for a quick buck."

"Then I'll go with you. I have a plan. It's not hard to see his corruption in action, but he has so much power over everyone in the city, that no one speaks out, and if they do, they usually wind up dead the next day, or sometimes their family members wind up dead in their place. He has ways of twisting evidence to his favor which is why I'm in this predicament. He's a monster, plain and simple. I was once in his custody and what I saw was a terrible sight I will never forget for as long as I live. He has an obsession with puppets, and to sate that obsession, he killed people, slowly removed their organs while they were still alive, and after they died, he would remove their bones. He'd then connect their boneless, gutless, bodies and would connect them to strings and he would make them perform some sort of twisted puppet show! He made his victims watch it and would gleefully tell us that we'd be joining the show soon! I was lucky to escape, but I only had time to untie myself and flee. I got out by finding a heavy object and destroying the window, and escaped all while listening to the muffled cries of his other victims. On my way out, he shot my leg, and I barely escaped with my life. I will do anything to take this man down! He did this to men, women, children, and even babies! He's a monster who must be locked away for good or better yet, he should die!" Said the woman.

"Holy crap, that man sounds psycho! If what you're saying is true, we got a real nutcase on our hands! Forget the bounty, getting rid of him would be a service to the world!" Said Kashu.

"Well said! You finally agreed that killing is a necessity!" Said Reaper.

"I didn't say anything about killing him, but if it's true, then I will incapacitate him, and expose his crimes if I find out what this woman said Is true."

"You're still so naïve... Have you not learned anything?! There's no way none of the police know about this! Do you think it's a coincidence that no one bothered to investigate Chief Stone after the numerous disappearances of people who came into contact with him? What makes you so sure that he'll be punished by law at all?!" Said Reaper.

"Even if he really is responsible, I'm sure he has people who'd grieve, people who'd want vengeance on us for killing him. Not to mention, he is sort of a big figure around these parts."
"So that's what this is about? You're afraid. To think you're such a coward. You disappoint me."

"Hey now, I never said we weren't going to do anything! We just need to be careful about this situation! We can't just go murder the guy especially since we don't know for sure if he's guilty! We need to investigate, and if he's guilty of all the stuff this woman says he's guilty of, then I'll expose his crimes and cripple him for life. That way, he can't run from his punishment anymore even if the police don't do anything. Oh, and assuming this is all true, I'm sure he won't be very liked in prison."

"Fine, but if what this lady said is true, then don't try to stop me when I gun him down. Very well, let's get moving then."

"Excellent! Oh, and for future reference, my name is Mithral. Please remember it!" Said the woman who had teal hair.

After asking around, many people denied knowing about Chief Stone's misdeeds, but others didn't. According to some, he had some officers apprehend people and they'd be taken somewhere never to be seen again. This gave Kashu the bright idea of becoming one of his victims. Kashu wasn't the most intimidating-looking person, in fact, he was quite the opposite. He was currently in a hidden room in a secret compartment of Chief Stones' house. Why did he have a secret compartment in his house? To conduct business with Red Pharmaceuticals of course. In exchange for keeping watch over Orange City and making sure any criminal with a Red Insignia gets excused. To get here, Kashu 'teamed up' with an obvious criminal to rob a bank and secretly screwed over his partner while he was at it. He had used his ki to make his weapons unusable when he wasn't looking. The criminal never knew what Kashu did, and they were both arrested. His innocent appearance made Chief Stone believe he'd make an excellent addition to his new collection.

"Welcome to your new home boy! I hope you enjoy the show! Hahahaha!" The Police chief's tone was jovial yet his intentions were clearly sinister. His rough voice which was used to verbally abuse those under his command changed into a voice of gleeful sadism. The man opened up a secret passage downstairs that led to a long staircase. Not caring for his wellbeing, he tossed the young teen down the stairs, where he was shortly forced to watch a puppet show that seemed like it would have been good for kids if the puppets weren't covered in human skin flapping around their bases.

"Unfortunately, I don't have time to carve you just yet! But don't worry, you won't have to wait long! Hahahahaha" the man said as he began walking out. Just as he opened the door, he heard two loud noises.

"KAAAAAAAAAA...MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE...KAAAAAAAAAA...MEEEEEEEEEEE...HAAAAAAAAAAA!" Stone heard the boy scream. He was used to his victims screaming, and them screaming what sounded like gibberish wasn't anything new to him either. However, what was new was the sound of something burrowing throw his walls. They were made of powerful alloys that even powerful explosives wouldn't be able to destroy. He ran back downstairs but tripped causing him to roll down the stairs and slam into a wall. He got up and noticed that there was a massive vertical hole in his wall that led straight outside, and to make matters worse, he was somehow removing the wire he used to tie up his victims. The hole created was much wider than the house itself.

"WHY YOU LITTLE?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!"

"Crap, did I say that right? I've practiced so much without saying the name that I forgot how it's pronounced! Well, whatever I set everyone free which means your reign of terror is over Chief Stone." Kashu triumphantly pointed at Chief Stone.

"YOU COCKY LITTLE CU-" He was cut off by Kashu uppercutting him in the gut, roundhouse kicking him into a wall, and giving the evil man an up-close and personal view of the same technique he used to blow up his Dungeon Communication room, and sent him burrowing into a wall. Kashu intentionally manipulated his ki to avoid killing him, but it did break his back and caused him extreme pain.

"W-What are you?!"

To this, Kashu smiled. "No one important. Just a kid who lost everything and decided to learn martial arts to fill in the void. Hey, don't be sad! I'm sure they'll appreciate you in prison! I mean it's not like it's filled with people you screwed over personally or anything."

"Kashu, what in the crap was that?!" Said Reaper who ran into the hole alongside Mithral."

"Such a useful skill you got there! How did you even do that?" Said the woman.

"Y-YOU! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO ESCAPED!"

"Yeah, that's right and now you will know what it's like to be defenseless. They're going to rip you apart in prison, just like how you ripped these people apart!"

"HOW DARE YOU LOOK AT ME AS IF I'M SOME DISGUSTING CREATURE!" The man exclaimed.

"Well, a disgusting creature is exactly what I view you as. You have more warts than a toad and you look like one too." Said Mithral.

"And you look like a dead woman!" The man takes a pistol out of his pocket and aims at her, but Kashu grabs the bullet in midair and flicks it right back into the muzzle of the gun, destroying it. Kashu happened to be so strong that his flicking a bullet had more power than a pistol shooting one. The man could only gasp in shock as he was disarmed.

"Now you're through! "Reaper shouted as he aimed his blaster at the man, but Kashu grabbed it and pushed it away.

"WAIT! The man is completely defenseless! There's no point in killing him!"

"Why shouldn't we?! You saw firsthand what he did to all those people! He would have done the same to you if you weren't some superhuman! This creature deserves to be on death row, but why wait when we could save the legal system trouble? They had so many opportunities to stop him, but they didn't!" Said Reaper.

"Then tell me what killing him will accomplish for you? This man will likely never see the sun after this place is revealed to the public. They'll have no choice but to arrest him, and he'll serve the rest of his life in jail. If you kill him, that might negatively affect your own future and the future of everyone else here."

"And what about you then?! You probably crippled that thing for life with that stunt you just pulled, and you helped rob a bank! Now the cops will be after us too!"

"I know that, but if you kill him, we'll get into even more trouble than what I might have already put you in. I'm sorry. I just couldn't let this guy get away with this any longer than he already had, but now that his victims are free, there's no way this be ignored." Said Kashu.

To this, Reaper sighed. "Kashu, you have a good heart. In fact, you taught me a lot. Before I met you, I thought vengeance was all I had to live for, but then I saw you, an older boy whose life was not only worse than mine but who had to live the pain of losing both his parents longer than I had to live with losing my father. Despite that, he never stopped living like I had. That said, you were foolish to join a group of mercenaries that kill people. I've seen you look sad when gazing at the corpses of our enemies, so why even stay here? You were a 3 person team before who balanced each other out, but now I'm here! I may not be as strong or as fast as you, but I have a gun that can shoot through almost anything that I find in some wasteland. If you left, they would be fine, and you'd be able to live your life!"

"You think I'm naïve because I'm too merciful, but believe it or not, I get where you're coming from. I look sad when I see the corpses of our enemies because I'm thinking about how it didn't have to come to that. I was naïve at a point. I thought that there was never ever a reason to kill, but that line of thinking nearly got me killed. Be that as it may, that doesn't mean I have to like killing people nor does it mean I should feel nothing for the lives that were lost. When Launch and Dagger kill people, it's because they pose a threat. Leave a criminal's lackey on the ground, they might shoot you in the back, or they might report us to the higher-ups in their group. Maybe it's a flaw that I don't have the heart to kill, but I have my reasons. Reaper, killing changes people, and not in a good way! In some cases, the act of killing will be addictive, or it can become a natural reaction that can lead to unnecessary deaths! I heard about your reputation as a guy who takes no prisoners. I won't tell you whether or not you were right or wrong to kill those people, but I will warn you. The more you kill, the easier it becomes to take a life, just as you would have quickly killed Mithral without hearing her out.

"Listen I-

"Reaper, I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but stuff like this has happened before. Launch and Dagger are both fully matured adults who have their fair share of regrets. You're only 15 Reaper, and you've been at this for a year. I know I sound like an old man, but you still have your life ahead of you. You can go back home, go to school, and make a life for yourself. I'm 17, but fighting is all I know. You can be so much more than just a killer for hire, and with your experience, you can defend yourself and your mother."

"And what would you know about unnecessary deaths? You know was unnecessary?! The death of our parents! Their killers didn't have to do that, but they did it for no other reason than for their own pleasure!"

"Reaper, do you think I never killed before? Outside of being inspired by my heroes, there's another reason why I joined the turtle hermit school. After my parents died, people did take care of me at first, but I still had trouble. There was a group of bullies who used to pick on me and beat me up all the time. At some point, I had enough and I fought back. The leader of the bullies said he respected me and that we should be friends since 'we both lost everything and we ought to stick together'. He even told me the reason he picked on me was for my own good, to prepare me for the real world. At the time, people took care of me, but I didn't have a lot of friends that were my own age and I was pretty gullible, so I joined up with them. We had fun together for a little, and we pulled pranks but then what started as harmless pranks became something else that was just straight-up mean, and those mean-spirited acts turned into criminal actions. I tried to speak up, but I was silenced. At some point they kidnapped a girl that the boss liked so we could have our way with her and that's when I stopped. At this point, the leader of that group taught me that I should always keep a pocketknife, and so I did. Of course, they all had daggers. We fought, but it ended with us all being very injured, and it was a miracle that I survived. Luckily the girl got away, but I killed two of the bullies to defend myself. People assured me that I wasn't a monster because I acted in self-defense, but that didn't change the fact that I killed people. I took children away from their mothers and I will forever be haunted by that. However, instead of wallowing in my own self-pity, I went to the Turtle Hermit School to not just be like my hero who recently passed away, but also so I could become strong enough that I didn't need to kill."

"Kashu… I never knew. I won't pretend to understand how you feel since we both took our losses differently, but I can empathize with you. I may disagree with your merciful ways, but I see now I was wrong to call you a fool. You don't show mercy because you think everyone will magically change after some fisticuffs, you show mercy because you want to. You're worried about me becoming a person who recklessly kills, huh? Well don't worry, I'll let him live just this once!" Reaper turned to Stone who was slumped on the wall created by Kashu's mispronounced Kamehameha. "You hear that swine? Be grateful that my dear friend saw fit to show even a disgusting creature like you mercy. I'm inclined to agree that your blood isn't even worth dirtying my hands. Goodbye, we will never meet again."

"YOU UNCULTURED LITTLE TWERP! HOW DARE YOU! A FOOL LIKE YOU COULD NEVER UNDERSTAND TRUE ART!" The man yelled.

"Come on Kashu, let's go home."

"Alright, that's the spirit!" Said Kashu.

"Thank you so much! You two are heroes! I'll be going now. There's no place for me here anymore, so I'll be moving away to another city." Said Mithral.

The three began to leave through the hole that everyone else ran through, turning their backs to the man stuck in the tunnel.

'Those brats ruined everything! I had it all, but those fools simply are too uncultured to understand true art!' His eyes narrowed at Kashu. 'You took everything from me, so I'll take everything from you… You may be a superhuman, but I doubt your little friend is.' The man pulled another object out of his pocket, and as Mithral turned back to look at him in disdain, she noticed he was holding a blaster like Reaper.'

"WATCH OUT!" She yelled, but it was too late. Chief Stone had aimed his blaster at Reaper's back, but before he could, Kashu knocked him out of the way, and the laser burned right through his chest."

"KASHU!" Reaper screamed.

'HAHAHA, MY BAD, I WAS AIMING FOR YOU! YOUR FRIEND SHOULD HAVE TOOK YOUR ADVICE! NOW HE'S DEAD, AND IT'S ALL BECAUSE YOU THOUGHT THIS WAS OVER!"

"Kashu, speak to me!" Reaper held Kashu's body in his arms.

"Hehe, hey Reaper... I guess this is it for me. I let my guard down and I paid the price."

"Don't die on my Kashu! You're... YOU'RE MY BEST FRIEND DAMN IT!"

Kashu smiled at him. "I'm glad you considered me that. It makes me wish we weren't bounty hunters working together but just regular old friends in school. Who knows, maybe in a different life, we will be just that. I know you might see this as confirmation that you were right and maybe you were in this case. I guess I had a flawed view of life after all, but that doesn't mean I was completely wrong either. There are still situations where killing isn't necessary, but those times aren't always clear. That's something that took me a while to understand but you understood that clearly. From now on, follow your own sense of justice and become better than me! ...Well I guess I'll be joining my parents. I wonder what's for dinner? I hope we meet again someday!"

"Wait!, I won't let you die, especially not before learning my actual name! My name isn't Reaper, it's-

"I know. We all did, but we all stuck with Reaper anyway. You're alias, Reaper is based on a personification of death yet you gave purpose to my life. I guess that's only natural since life is meaningless without death. For all the time I was with Launch and Dagger, I wanted to be a hero who defends the defenseless, just like my hero. When he died, I lost my will to live, but I also did a lot of self-reflection. I realized I wasted my life trying to be like someone I could never be. I didn't have a reason to live anymore, but I found reason because of you. I wanted you to have something I couldn't, a real future to look forward to. I figured if I could save this one person from ruining his future like I have, I too could be considered a hero like him... Heh, a hero. That's what you were. You were also my hero." While in Reaper's arms, Kashu closes his eyes never to open them again.

"HAHAHAHAHA, WHAT A MAGNIFICENT DEATH SCENE! I ONLY WISH I COULD USE HIS CORPSE TO REPLICATE IT!" Said Chief Stone.

"YOU BASTARD!" An enraged Reaper fired at the man's hand, causing him to scream in pain briefly, but after a while, he started laughing again.

"HE WAS MY BEST FRIEND AND YOU KILLED HIM!"

"Well, he killed my livelihood so we're even! What's wrong?! Aren't you going to kill me? My life is over anyway, but now you'll have to live the rest of your life knowing you let your friend die!" The man cruelly mocked the blonde teenager as wept for his deceased friend."

"You're pathetic! You know that?! HE WAS GOING TO LET YOU LIVE!" Mithral yelled.

"Well, it's only a matter of time before someone comes after me to finish the job! Who knows, maybe I'll be lucky, and the police will find me! They haven't done SHIT for years even though people complained about me, so what's going to make them start?! Not so tough now?! What's wrong, are you going to disrespect your friend's wishes?!"

"No… I won't disrespect his memory by killing you. In fact, wipe off some of your blood since you can't move."

"What?! But aren't you upset at me?!"

"Kashu always expressed charity to those who didn't deserve it, so I'll help you just this once in memory of him. Be that as it may, this is the last favor you'll ever get from anyone."

"I'm so grateful! I'll make sure to tell the public how you saved my life from that lowlife!" He said mockingly.

"You know, this underground room looks broken, so I think it can use some rebuilding don't you?" Said Reaper with no emotion in his voice. It was a bit of a process, but Reaper managed to gather enough material to seal him in and make it seem as if he was never there to begin with. Stone took extra precautions to make sure no one heard the screams of his victims and now it worked against him. Reaper grabbed Kashu's corpse and before he left, he looked back at the stone wall and spoke. "Your name is Stone yes? It's only fitting that you become one with the ground. You're going to sit there and rot and as you die, you'll have all the time to think back on your life and realize just how insignificant you truly were. Now goodbye."

"SO YOU'RE JUST GOING TO LEAVE ME HERE HUH?! WELL, I WON'T GIVE YOU THE SATISFACTION OF SEEING ME BEG FOR MERCY! I'LL SEE YOU IN HELL!"

Reaper then left with Kashu's corpse. It was here that he would swear vengeance on criminals, and people who refused to do anything about the law. When he got back to their base of operations.

Later...

Launch had blue hair at the moment, but she was very upset about hearing Kashu's death.

"No! He was such a kind boy! He reminded me of someone I used to know! My other self wanted to protect him! When we first met him, he was so cute andd innocent. He reminded of us someone named Goku when he was a boy. Kashu loved hearing about stories of him and especially of his son. He wanted to be just like them since he was a little kid!"

"Damn it... The little twerp just had to go and die on me?! Is this the world's way of punishing me for what I did?! I'M SORRY OKAY?! TAKE MY LIFE, BUT GIVE BACK KASHU!" Dagger tearfully shouted into the air.

"He didn't have to die... It was all my fault. I should have stuck to my guns, and maybe Kashu would still be breathing."

"Wha- What happened? Reaper, I'm sad too, but I'm sure Kashu wouldn't blame you for his death." Said the blue-haired Launch.

"We were on a mission to capture or kill a woman who we thought was responsible for the deaths of many people but it turns out the police chief was the real culprit. Kashu easily beat him and freed his captives but after I tried to finish him off, Kashu stopped me and we had another argument. He told me about his past and explained why he was so against killing. He knew the man was irredeemable but he didn't want me to kill him because he didn't want me to become someone who recklessly took lives. I felt guilty because I almost did just that and if not for Kashu, I would have murdered an innocent woman. I felt like I owed him a lot, not just for stopping me, but for being my friend. That's why I decided to compromise and spare his life. That was the wrong move because Chief Stone had a secret blaster that he fired at my back. Kashu took the shot and died. Before he died, he said... he said I was his hero. That I gave meaning to his life after the death of one of his other heroes..." Said Reaper as he cried.

"So that's how he died huh?! Killed by a law enforcement pig?! Reaper... Kashu was the only person who thought I could change. I was never a good person, not even after we met. I had no remorse for the lives I took, and if it weren't for him, I would have killed you when we met, just to ensure my own survival. Over the years, Kashu kept beating me in the head with the idea that I changed as a person, but every change I made was for the sake of survival... But when he kept believing in me, it made me want to change for real. I got attached to him, ya know? He was like a son that I didn't deserve. You were right about me from the moment we met. I don't deserve to live, but Kashu did. Just like you gave meaning to Kashu's life, Kashu gave meaning to my life, but now that he's dead... I don't have that. I do know that Kashu gave his life so you could have a future. As long as I live, I'm going to dedicate my life to making sure Kashu didn't die for nothing!"

"I-If this is your way of showing pity, I don't want it!" Said Reaper.

"This isn't pity kid. It's just me paying back a debt that I owe to your friend. He wanted you to go back home to your mama ya know? From the day we found you in Parsely City, Kashu was constantly saving his share of Zeni from all of our missions so you could afford a safe trip home, whenever you were ready. He was worried about your family, so he begrudgingly accepted you as part of the group. I'm sure Kashu would probably be mad at me for telling you this, but Kashu was trying to bring your family business back to its former glory by getting enough money and sending it back to your mother. Your friendship meant a lot to him, so your survival means a lot to me."

"Hey, Reaper..." Said Launch.

"Yes, lady Launch?"
"Oh, you can just call me Launch!" She smiled at him with tears in her eyes. "You meant so much to Kashu so I'm sure he's looking down at you from the heavens. I'm sure he's happy up there. He'll be able to meet his idol after all!"

"I hope so... Kashu, if you listening to me. I miss you so much and I wish you were still standing by my side. Looking back, I don't think either of us were ever cut out to be mercenaries. Despite this, we managed and we still had a good time together. It was short, but the time we spent together was the best day of my life. I don't know if a killer like me could go to heaven like you have, but if I go to hell, I'll remember you fondly for the rest of my existence." Said Beytah.

One Year Later: Age 781

Kashu's death had affected them in different ways. Launch was already a heavy drinker, especially after what happened with Tien. However, when Kashu died, she almost killed herself by overdrinking, only for Dagger to stop her. Speaking of Dagger, he'd become something of a guard to Reaper. Reaper was already used to this treatment as he had many guards back at his old mansion. Many of them left with the wealth that he lost but the loyal ones stayed with his mother. As for Dagger, he'd become a renowned bounty hunter. He still traveled with Launch and Dagger, but they often went on solo missions. They had set up camp in a place where a certain ex-desert bandit once lived. He was a good friend of the man she loved after all. Reaper still took on jobs, but he only took jobs that involved capturing people. He tried not to kill but when his hand was forced, he'd sit in one place and begin talking to and apologizing to someone. This was such a common occurrence that he became known for it. They called him the Praying Reaper. No one knew exactly who he was talking to except Launch and Dagger. Launch's bounty hunter team was a freelancing group of mercenaries meaning they took jobs from many guilds. They weren't the greatest mercenaries, but they were recognized as competent enough. One day, Launch decided it was time to disband the group.

"Alright, it's been fun you two, but it's time to call it quits. It just ain't the same without Kashu." Said Launch

Reaper sighed. "Well you aren't wrong, but what will I do from here on out? After Kashu died, I tried to leave the bounty hunter lifestyle, but I just couldn't do it. This group is what brought us together, and it's the only memory I had of him. Kashu was the first real friend that I ever had, and this gang is all I have left of him. I-I don't want to leave!"

"Reaper, this is exactly what Kashu wouldn't have wanted. I know I'm being mighty hypocritical when I say this, but he would have wanted ya to move on from him. I should have done this the moment Kashu died, but I couldn't help myself. I became a bounty hunter to fill in a void. After I lost Tien, I started robbin Brown Country again, but I couldn't feel the same rush as before, so I turned to the other side of the law to see if things would be any different. It was for a little, but when Kashu and Dagger joined me, I felt that rush again, and I knew exactly what was missing. I was lonely, so I relied on Kashu and Dagger to be happy." Said the blonde-haired version of Launch.

Reaper apologetically bowed to Launch. "I'm so sorry. If I hadn't selfishly begged to join your group, Kashu would still be with you!"

"Shut up! It pisses me off when you blame yourself! He knew the risks since we formed this damn squad! He chose to go on that mission with ya, he made his choice to investigate the situation and he made his choice to give his life for ya! He didn't want you in this group because he knew it was dangerous, but he also didn't want you to have to fend for yourself! I'm done being a bounty hunter. I don't know where I'll go next, but before that, I'm gonna get you back home to your mom! And don't forget the money!"

"Alright. It's about time that I see her anyway. I've only been gone for a little over a year, so maybe she'll forgive me. I know I'll be grounded for sure. I wouldn't be surprised if she knows, but I hope she doesn't know about all the criminals I killed. It won't be easy to look her in the eye, but I need this."

"I'll take the blame for you. I'll even go with you back to South City to see you off, but there's one problem. How are we gonna get over all that water? We'd need a boat or a plane."

"I had a plane, but it was destroyed by you know who. I could ask an old friend for a favor, but we need to find a safe place. I have some old friends who live around here. I'd hate to show up unannounced, especially after what happened but I know for sure they can get in contact with the lady I'm looking for."

Later...

They were on the East District since it was an easy way to meet up with Launch's old friends. Dagger was riding a motorcycle, and Launch was riding one too with Reaper in the backseat. They were being chased by police officers who planned to arrest them all. Launch was previously a criminal and they weren't far from brown county, a place where she was still one of the most wanted criminals, Dagger did unspeakable acts, and Reaper was being chased for the crime of breaking and entering. These weren't ordinary Police Officers though, as they all had ray guns and instead of wearing blue outfits, and unlike the cops, they weren't easy to lose. After a somewhat long chase, one of the 'cops' pulled out a rocket launcher and shot at the group. Noticing this, they all accelerate, but they end up being knocked onto the ground.

"Alright, you folks are under arrest. Dagger, you were one of a member of the Red Shark gang who are guilty of numerous crimes including be not limited to mass murder, theft, sexual assault, kidnapping, destruction of property, and arson. Launch, you are guilty of robbery, resisting arrest, and assault. As for you young man, you are guilty of not only being their accomplice, but you're guilty of crimes of your own. Does the name Chief Stone ring any bells?" To this, Reaper began sweating as he was forced to recall that awful day. The 'officer' continued. "The man was a psychopath, but you're still guilty of breaking and entering. Are you aware that the man had a wife and daughter? I'm sure they were surprised at what the man had done, but you put two innocent people in danger with what you pulled. Firing a weapon in a house with a child. You should be ashamed of yourself!"

"Don't you dare play that card on me! First of all, none of that would have happened if you idiots did your jobs in the first place! Second of all, he kidnapped someone who was close to me! H-He… HE WAS MY BEST FRIEND DAMN IT! AND HE'S DEAD BECAUSE YOU MORONS LET HIM GET AWAY WITH HIS CRIMES FOR YEARS! SO WHAT?! YOU DIDN'T DO CRAP TO STOP CHIEF STONE WHEN HE WAS RIGHT THERE YET YOU TRAVELED OVER 1000 KM JUST TO CATCH THE GUY WHO DID YOUR JOB FOR YOU?! WHERE WAS YOUR SENSE OF JUSTICE WHEN CHIEF STONE WAS TURNING CHILDREN INTO PUPPETS!"

"Hehe, well what can I say? Money talks." The man grinned.

"So, it was all for money?! Well, you want to know a little something about money?! IT CAN'T GET YOU OUT OF HELL!" And thus, the shootout started. It was a long and arduous battle and by the end of it, things were looking good. However, in the middle of the shootout, launch sneezed, reverting to her blue-haired form, and all she could do was scream. Seeing this, two men tried to grab her, but Dagger shot the two men with his dual pistols while Reaper guarded his rear. Eventually, there were only about five men left, Dagger spotted more cars coming and planned out something.

"Reaper, take Launch and leave okay?!"
"What about you?!"

"What about me? I was nothing but an ex-criminal who lost his will to live, only to regain it because of Kashu. Since Angry Launch isn't here, I'll confess. I was originally planning on betraying Launch. I saw how she fights and I wanted to end my life in an epic shootout with her. However, Kashu kept believing that there was good in me even though there wasn't, and before I knew it, I found myself caring about both of them. When my old gang was blown to smithereens by those two monsters, I wasn't broken because I lost friends, I was broken because it showed me how weak I actually was. The members of my old gang... We weren't friends. If a member of our gang died, we'd laugh and mock them for being weak. However, we had fun together when we committed crimes, and none of us wanted to be alone. When I was with Kashu and Launch, I finally knew what friendship was. Who knows? Maybe if I wasn't such a bad kid, I would know what it was like to have friends at an early age and I wouldn't go down a bad road in life. I joined Launch for the sake of survival. Nothing more, nothing less. I was never a 'good guy' as Kashu would have put it, but the more he believed in me, the more I found myself wanting it to be true. I guess I kind of deserve this. It's like you said, I need to pay for my crimes, and this is how I'll do it. NOW LEAVE, OR AN INNOCENT WOMAN'S BLOOD WILL BE ON YOUR HANDS!"

"But… Okay, I'll do it! But before I go, I want to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry I treated you like the scum of the universe. Kashu believed you changed and I didn't. However, you proved me wrong time and time again, but I was still too stubborn to accept that. I guess bad people really can change." Said Reaper reluctantly.

"Dagger, please don't go. You're my friend! I know you're not a bad person!" Said Launch.

"Sorry, but I'm anything but a good person. I know I did unforgivable things. I'm not proud of a lot of it and for some of it, I'm still indifferent towards it, but if I had any kind of saving grace, it was thanks to Kashu, a kid whose future we ruined. He could have done something great with his life. The kid was a superhuman and he could have been like his heroes. I could have come with him on that mission, but I didn't because I wanted to see Reaper's potential as a bounty hunter for myself. None of us were prepared for the Police Chief to be the real culprit, but if I had been there, then I would have been able to prevent Kashu's death. I failed with him, but I can at least protect Reaper. Go on, and take Reaper to your old friends, and bring him back to where he came from."

And with that, Reaper took Launch somewhere to hide as Dagger ended up waiting for the 'cops' to arrest him. They drove up and shouted at him.

"Alright hands where we can see them! Where are the woman and the boy!"

"Heh, those two? I got rid of them myself. They were of no use to me. I only used them to get revenge on Chief Stone for arresting me when I was a young lad." Said Dagger. As established before, Dagger was a genuine criminal back then, and Stone was a man who genuinely wanted to do good. However, one day he was offered an opportunity by a man by the name of Carmine and he accepted. In exchange for allowing his organization to operate and participate in questionable activities in his city, Stone would be given a large sum of Zeni and a secret room to live out all of his fantasies.

"So you're the one who orchestrated his death?!" Said one of the officers.

"THAT'S RIGHT BITCHES! THAT FATASS HAD IT COMING! MAN, IT MUST HAVE BEEN A SIGHT TO SEE HIM STARVE TO DEATH AFTER HE WAS BURIED BEHIND THAT WALL!"

The men made an opening for a certain person and it was a man in a red suit with a pompadour. He had a serious look on his face and Dagger knew he met business.

"I know all about that fool. He was merely a pawn we used to freely operate in that specific city. However, instead of delivering our test subjects to us, he used them for his own sick fantasies. We didn't trust the man, so we placed a camera in the secret room we installed under his house, so we witnessed everything including that boy who was similar to the monkey responsible for the end of our organization in the past, but now we've returned. That room had too many secrets and that boy might know too much about us which is why he must be put to death. In truth, we would have killed that man ourselves, as he was now completely useless to us, but it would have been a wasted effort now that the strongest Android has been finished. We were able to accomplish it and it was all thanks to a certain scientist. I'm sure you figured it out by now, but we are not the police. That boy has seen things he wasn't supposed to see in that room, so we must eliminate him. If you tell me where the boy is, I will spare your life and our organization can provide you with whatever you want. Does that sound good?"

"Hey, that sounds like a pretty sick deal! You know what I say to that? SCREW YOU! THAT'S WHAT!" Dagger pulled out his guns and proceeded to gun down dozens of men before being gunned down himself. His last thoughts were about his team. 'Heh, I guess it's fitting for garbage like me. Oh well, I guess these beats rotting in jail for the rest of my life. Looks like it's off to hell, so I won't be seeing you Kashu. You really were special, and so were you Reaper. I never did learn your actual name, but it's whatever. Just make it safe alright. Launch would never forgive herself if you died… I guess this is the end for me. What a twist it was.' Those were his last thoughts as he died.

"Hmph, what a waste of time that was. Men continue the search. They couldn't have gotten far." Said the man with the Pompadour.

Meanwhile, Reaper and Launch were running away through the trees.

"Why would he do something so reckless?!" Said Reaper tearfully.

"Shh, don't cry. I'm sure Mr. Dagger will be okay! Let's get you somewhere safe. I know, just the place. I know a family that lives in this area. We'll be safe there and then will get you back to your mother. Did we get enough money for her by the way?"

"Y-Yes, I'm sure we have… but so many people died for that to happen. I should have never left home. Getting money for my mother was nothing more than an excuse. I just wanted revenge, but it was never worth it.

"Reaper, it's okay, We all lost someone we loved in this terrible time. It's so easy to think about what we could have or should have done that we don't think about what would have happened even if we had done it. You've told me before, but where did you live before you went on this journey?"

"I-I lived in South City. But that's pretty far away now."

"Well, I know a good way to get you home!" Said Launch in her blue-haired form.

Launch would take Reaper to a friend's house. This friend was a woman by the name of Chi-Chi. She was a very friendly yet sad woman but that was a given considering she had lost her son. She prepared food for him, and called… 'BULMA?! The richest woman in the world?! How does this woman know her?!' Reaper thought.

Bulma, being the rich woman she was, easily arranged for Reaper to be sent back to South City, but before he got on the plane he said goodbye.

"Hey Launch. I want you to know that I really appreciate you looking out for me. Being around you all made me realize what it was like to have real friends. Dagger was recently found dead in the East District and I can't help but hate myself for how I treated him. No matter how much I disrespected him, he was always nice to me. And Kashu… He was my best friend and I let him die. I let them both die! I Just…"

The woman hugged Reaper. "You've been through a lot. I'm saddened by their losses too. However, I don't think either of them blame you one bit! In fact, I thi- no, I know they are looking down on us from heaven!"

"Thank you Launch. It means a lot. When I first met you, my motivation was nothing but revenge, but thanks to you and everyone else, I realized there's more to my life than just that. That boy I saw at that lady's house. I believe in him. He's strong, just like Kashu's hero. And when he wins, I'm sure Van Zant will finally be brought to justice! Hey, so I meant to tell everyone what my real name is, but I never got around to it after… Well, you know.

"Oh, I knew all along silly! The other me heard about it in passing before, but she never brought it up. Your father was a good man!"

"Yes. Yes he was." Reaper smiled sadly at her as he was upset about the deaths of both Dagger and Kashu but he understood they wouldn't want him to mope.

Later…

When Reaper arrived at South City he noticed that many buildings were destroyed and entire roads were on fire, so it wasn't too different from many other cities in the world, but the sight still terrified Reaper to no end. He ran fast to get to the bunker. However, unfortunately, things would take a turn for the worse when he was on a crosswalk. He had the right of way, however…

"Haha, you'll never catch me alive! A man exclaimed excitedly as drove away from the cops. He ignored the crossed walk and rammed straight into 'Reaper', killing him instantly.

*CRASH*

"Oh was that poor sod a child?! Well, it sucks to be him!" The man laughed as he lay dead in the streets. As this event happened two people observed from above.

"I wonder how long it will take for him to be killeed. If he dies within the next hour, you owe me." Said the male voice.

"Oh please, there's no point in Zeni. We can just threaten people or take what we want." Said the female voice.

"Yeah, we could, but that kills the fun of it. Come on sis!"

"Fine, but only because ole one arm isn't around anymore and that kid, he keeps around him isn't strong enough yet either."

News of his death would make headlines and his mother who actually survived was devastated. Only a few days after his death, a man by the name of Hedo heard of his death and decided he'd be the perfect candidate for his next project. Bringing the dead back to life. The result was mostly successful, but remaking an exact copy of this kid's brain was impossible, even for someone like Hedo. Still, Hedo was able to create a zombie Android from his corpse and unlike most of the Alpha series, the body didn't completely rot. After some experimenting, the boy whose group knew him as Reaper, woke up as an Android. However, there were some problems. For one, his memory was shattered, and he was overwhelmed by feelings of hatred and sorrow.

"W-Who am I?" The android asked.

"Ah yes, it worked! It actually worked! Ahem… My name is Dr. Hedo, and I am a genius scientist only rivaled by Bulma Briefs! Anyway, I am responsible for resurrecting you from the dead! You see, you were run over by a man known as Van Zan-

"ERHGHAAAA!" The android was enraged upon hearing that name.

"Are you okay Beta 1?"

"Beta 1? Is that my name?"

"Well, that's your Android name. If you don't like it, that's fine. You were a human before I made you into an Android."

"Why did you do that?! Why did you turn me into a monster like them?!"

"This was the only way I knew how to bring you back to life. You see, you were killed by a man known as Van Zant. When you were alive, Van Zant killed your father and so you left South City and traveled around the world doing bounty-hunting jobs. You also had a very unique ray gun. It was different from the ones from the old Red Ribbon Army. You garnered a bit of a reputation and I remember reading about you."

"What do you want?! There's no way you brought me back out of the kindness of your heart!"

"What I wanted from you specifically was to find out how I can bring people back from the dead, and now that I learned I'm certain, I can continue my research to my heart's content! Unfortunately, you're brain was damaged by the car crash and I can't replicate all the information that was lost, but at least I found out fresh dead bodies are more efficient than bodies that have already rotted. Anyway, I'm working on something great with a kindred spirit of mine! We both come from families who suffered because of one bad apple in the tree! The Red Ribbon army corrupted my grandfather's mind and my parents hated them for it. Despite that, my parents were looked at like the scum of society, and I was relentlessly bullied as a kid! The CEO of Red Pharmaceuticals was just like me, but while I became a greater scientist than my grandfather, he became a successful business owner and agreed to fund me! Now we'll not only be able to bring people back to life, but we'll have to get rid of all the criminals making it impossible to rebuild! When that's done, I'll create an army of superheroes that will eliminate all evil! Do you feel resentment towards the man who killed your father and yourself? Well now you can, and nobody can stop you!"

"I can hardly remember anything of my past life, but I do remember him laughing after he rammed into me, and you say he's also responsible for killing my father?! Tell me where he is RIGHT NOW!"

"Calm down, you'll get your revenge in due time. Just make sure you learn how to control your new powers. We wouldn't want any casualties."

"And why should I care? Innocent people die all the time, and with your technology, we can bring them back anyway! All that matters is cleaning up the filth!"

"Beta 1, if we kill innocent people for no reason, then we're the filth, and my technology can't resurrect someone if their body is too damaged, not to mention it costs a lot! If it's necessary to destroy a villain, then do what you have to, but if innocent people are caught in the crossfire, do not vaporize them, okay?"

"Well, I suppose I owe you that much after resurrecting me. Very well, I will accept your conditions. I will practice my new abilities, and I will execute the serial killer known as Van Zant."

"Oh, before that, please wear this suit!" Hedo pulled out a blue suit to hand to the android.

…

"Lame." Said the android.

"OH, COME ON, I WORKED HARD ON THAT! Fine, be that way then! I'll figure out something that you'll like… In the meantime, let me figure out where Van Zant is located."

"Yes, bring me his location." Said Beta 1.

Dr. Hedo smiled with glee. "Yes, I get to see a human-based ghoulie in action!"

Van Zant and his butler, Smitty were in a shootout with the police. Van Zant was having the time of his life while Smitty was screaming through the entire thing. Van Zant had taught him that shooting people felt good, but to him, it didn't feel good when his victims were shooting back.

"Come on Smitty! Be a bit more excited! This is the thrill of a lifetime!"

"There must be a way we can talk this out!" Said Smitty, the same man who shot innocent people."

"Aw don't be scared, Smitty! If we die, we're going out with a bang! We're all gonna die anyway so lets see how many people we can shoot up before that happens!"

"The only thing correct about that sentence is that you'll die. As for chubs, he's right to be scared."

Van Zant looked at him and laughed.

"What's with this suit?! Oh, I get it, a kid wants to play! Well let's play a game where you stand there and I shoot. Ready." He smirks and his eyes squinch in anticipation. He fires the bullet, but the bullet fails to even pierce the kids' skin.

"W-What the hell!"

"Do you remember my face? Here's a hint, it's the face of someone you killed recently."

"Why would I? If I killed your brother or something, he was no different than the others that I gunned down!"

Beta 1 took off his mask revealing who he was to the man.

"Oh, I remember your face! You must be a relative of his! I got so famous for running over that kid! It wasn't on purpose, but I'm happy about what it did for my reputation! I just wish I shot him instead! Hahahahaha!"

Beta 1 seemingly teleported in front of him, and swiped at his lower jaw, ripping it off, and cutting his laughter short. He then opened his palm and shoved an energy blast near his face. The Ki blast was so hot that it slowly disintegrated what was left of his head, and Van Zant felt every moment of it. As he died, he obviously couldn't say anything as the bottom of his face was gone. However, as Beta 1 began disintegrating his face, he realized the kid he had killed had somehow come back to life and got his revenge. He only hoped that his death would be covered on the news to add to his reputation as a killer. Beta 1 threw his headless body at the cowering Smitty, before walking over to Van Zant's ripped of jaw, and crushed it with his feet in front of Smitty all while making direct eye contact with the man. The android wore a smug grin on his face as he did it.

"Wait, Wait, Wait I'll give you what's left of his inheritance! Just spare my life!" The man begged, pleading for him not to know that all of his inheritance was destroyed.

Beta 1 simply smirked, and took his open hand out at him. Smithy flinched, only to realize he had not fired. He looked up and saw that Beta 1 was no longer aiming at him.

"Than-" Smithy never finished his sentence as Beta 1 had immediately put his hand up again and blasted him, completely obliterating Smithy and the remains of Van Zant.

Beta 1 walked out, looked at the cops with disdain, and said one word. "Pathetic." And then he proceeded to fly away.

Later…

"Excellent work! It was a success! Now, since I resurrected you against your will, I will not force you to work for me, but let me explain myself a bit. As you know my name is Dr. Hedo, and it is my personal goal is to create the Ultimate Android that will rid the world of evil and prove once and for all that I am not like my grandfather! That is the goal I share with my employer. As for those two monsters, I already have something planned for them, and that Android is almost complete! Whatever you do from now on, do not engage with them okay? You can go after any other criminal, but not them."

"That's fine with me for now. Dr. Hedo was it? You said your goal is to rid the world of evil. Well, that's what I desire most of all too. I would be more than happy to join you in this crusade of yours. From now on, I'm your loyal servant. I don't remember nor do I care about what my original name was, so from now on, I am Beta 1."

"Alright then! From now on, you will be known as Beta 1!"

Present

It was around the time school started, but Beta 1 was elsewhere. He was searching for whoever was responsible for all the disappearances around Japan. Beta 1 was looking for clues in a neighborhood that was completely empty. There was nothing but clothes, objects that were turned on such as water hoses and lawnmowers, which were almost always next to a pile of clothes. There were also cars in the middle of the street, and upon observing the top, Beta 1 saw that there were holes in there. His sense of danger failed him, and he instead thought things such as his last conversation with Goten, and who exactly he was in the past.

'That's odd. Faces belong to people I don't know the names of keep popping up in my head. Ever since Goten tried to preach to me about his sense of justice, I could have sworn I heard someone tell me what he told me before! Was that person Goten himself? He somehow knew who I was even though I don't remember him. He has to be from my world, but when Hedo failed to bring our base of operations to the past, and we ended up here, I don't remember a face like his being in the time machine and yet I do remember seeing a face similar to his prior to that incident. In fact, I think it's another one of my memories resurfacing of before I was an android. What exactly was my connection to Son Goten? Well, it doesn't matter now! I have a villain to find!'

And with that, Beta 1 had skipped school to chase after a monster, but little did he know, this wasn't just any monster. No, this was a beast that would go down in history, if there even was a history after it was through with the world.

Going to come back to edit this further when I get my new computer.