Dragon Ball - Heart of Adventurers

Written by LastationLover5 and Demod20

Chapter 49 - Future Tone

Clear, pristine skies.

Air, unsoiled by the acrid smell of smoke, flame, and decay.

To one young woman, these were smells she'd only ever heard about. Her craft had touched down, all five legs clicking easily into the rough hewn rock off the cliffside in the Yunzabit Highlands. Having stepped out into the frigid air, she had to admit, the 'end of the world' had a different meaning when viewed this way. Sighing, she pressed a button on the side of her vehicle - an egg-shaped craft with multple thrusters in addition to its five legs, and a class canopy at the top - and it reduced itself to capsule form with a POMF!

The chilled winds crushed passed her, ruffling her purple jacket, emblazoned with the Capsule Corporation logo. The woman's spiked-lavender tresses blew back in the fierce gale, and her monkey-like tail stood at attention, clearly irate. Her attire was odd, a combination of casual clothes, and martial arts gi. Worn slung on her back was a crimson staff. Pocketing the capsule, the woman inhaled deeply. The air truly was delicious, just like her mother had told her it used to be.

"Good thing I wore something under the shirt," she muttered ruefully. "I did not expect it to be freezing." Closing her eyes, she extended her senses, taking in the vast amount of life that simply was here. Searching, her mind focused on one ki signature only. She knew it well, as it was the ki of one of her favourite people.

"There you are, Uncle!" Gently floating into the sky, a white aura flared to life, overtaking the woman, who couldn't help but grin widely. "No one else's ki could feel like that!"

Wasting no time, she tore off along the highlands, her thoughts racing with the images of one man, and one man only.

Raditz wove through the sky like a trained dancer. His opponent, Piccolo, was discharging thin bolts of ki from his eyes, aiming to strike Raditz down with precision shots. The Saiyan spun around each thin beam with ease, his movements swift and even reptilian. One of the many things he considered lacking in his style was the ability to dodge and move properly; Saiyans typically used their Giant Monkey forms as trump cards, and dodging when one was so large was typically not part of the strategy. Even now, with his new transformed state - which Tights had unhelpfully coined the 'Wrath State' the one training session she'd see him slip into it - did not lend much to dodging. He tended to give himself over to emotion in that state, and fight almost like a berserker.

Work on avoidance training now, and avoid critical mistakes in the future. That was the idea, anyway.

"Dodging won't mean a thing if you don't strike back," snapped Piccolo, abandoning his distance tactic. Swiftly, the Nameccian closed the distance between himself and Raditz, forcing the Saiyan to come to an abrupt halt. Clenching both fists together, Piccolo brought them down onto Raditz in a powerful sledgehammer.

"What do you think I was waiting for?" replied Raditz, raising both arms above his head. Piccolo's hands crashed into his limbs, the Saiyan flexing his muscles and bracing for impact. Snarling, he forced Piccolo back, deflecting the blow and grinning in spite of himself. Raditz knew Piccolo would change tactics eventually - dodging could be used as a form of strategy, not simply a way to avoid and evade. A gloved palm ignited, ki coating it in purple flames. Raditz brought the hand upwards, discharging a point blank blast in front of Piccolo.

The Saiyan's kikōha exploded with a violent burst; flame and smoke issued in all directions, and the long-maned Saiyan grinned broadly. A grin which promptly slid from his face as a long, green arm snaked its way out of the obscuring particles. The clawed, four-fingered hand clenched around his neck, even as Raditz tried to beat at it. He felt his body lifted, high into the sky by the elongated limb, before being let loose to fly ever skyward. Piccolo's hand reared, serpent-like, releasing a kikōha of its own towards its prey.

Raditz, spinning wildly, narrowly managed to beat the sphere away with his own tail. Steadying himself, he saw Piccolo fully as the smoke cleared, the Nameccian grinning to himself. Raditz frowned. Piccolo easily could have put up a barrier or something to defend himself, yet he decidedly tanked Raditz's point-blank attack.

Pan, who sat on the edge of one of the Yunzabit Highland's many cliffsides, watched with rapt attention. To see her uncle and her mentor clash in what felt like a serious fight - to her anyway - was astounding. Her tail wagged with glee, twitching with every movement the two combatants made.

"Damned show-off," muttered Raditz. He knew Piccolo had only grown stronger since their adventures on Namek. Even when Kakarrot was available, Piccolo was one of his most frequent training partners, so chances for both the Nameccian to develop, and Raditz to witness the development, were never short. Piccolo was making use of the awakened powers that 'elder' Nail had brought out very well. It was almost frustrating to see a Nameccian fighting level with a Saiyan so easily.

Angling his aim upwards, Piccolo prepared two spheres in both hands, letting them loose towards Raditz, who dove downward, avoiding both blasts easily. Ki began to glow around his palm, until his instincts told him to check behind him. Peering over his shoulder, one of the kikōha pursued him across the sky.

Shit!

Seemingly having forgotten that this training was centered around in the high of battle, Raditz was brought crashing back down to the reality of the task. A tracking kikōha. Of course, Piccolo had something like that. Nosediving, Raditz made haste in the opposite direction of his pursuer, only for it to keep pace evenly. Tearing across the Yunzabit Highlands, the kikōha followed Raditz, Piccolo directing it easily with a single hand. Realising there was no proper way to get around it - and knowing Piccolo would not fall for a tactic such as leading it back to him - Raditz spun in mid-air, letting loose a kikōha of his own. The two blasts met, exploding above the Highlands in a shower of light...

...only for the second kikōha Raditz had forgotten about to collide with him, bursting on impact. The smoke obscuring his vision was swept away in moments, but Raditz's ego had taken more damage than his body. Piccolo had successfully pulled one over on him.

"I hope you're not feeling too proud of yourself," said Raditz, hovering back towards his adversary. He felt torn between irritation and eagerness. "For that cheap little trick?"

"If you're calling it cheap because it worked," shrugged Piccolo, grinning.

The two stared daggers at each other from across the distance.

Then they rushed forward, preparing to continue the round — when both of them stopped short in mid-air, seemingly frozen. Raditz and Piccolo had felt it, at the same time, at that exact moment.

Rushing towards them at breakneck speeds now, was a gargantuan combat strength. It was ridiculously large, yet also seemed familiar. Neither of them could place where they'd felt it before.

"K-Kakarrot?" suggested Raditz, trying to feel for the strength to clearly get a read in. "No, that's not Kakarrot. But who is it?!"

A light appeared in the sky as if to answer their question. A while flame, speeding across the sky, before coming to a full and total halt in front of them. The flame vanished instantly, materialising a young woman in front of them. Her manner of dress, combined with her shock of lavender spikes, and the staff she wielded, were all startlingly familiar to both Piccolo and Raditz, yet neither one could place exactly what. Now that she was closer, her ki felt even more like Son Gokū, both in volume as well as familiarity.

"Whew!" grinned the young woman, her hair whipping around in the Yunzabit Highlands' powerful winds. "I haven't been able to fly that fast in a long time! Took me only a few seconds to make it here!" Piccolo and Raditz stared at her, clearly too stunned for words. They couldn't even stare daggers at her in their usual attempts at intimidation. It seemed well and truly that neither one of the two fighters knew what to say. After a slow exhale, the young woman's grin faded slightly, taking in the faces of Raditz and Piccolo. An awkward silence formed between the three...

...only to be broken by young Pan, who floated up, very eager.

"Hey! Who are you?!"

"I—" The young woman seemed flabbergasted by the sudden interruption, least of all from the young Saiyan girl. "I was getting to that! I just had to really..." Her eyes began to shine, and tears leaked from both corners of her eyes. "Uncle! It really is you!"

"U-Uncle?!" Raditz gestured towards his face in confusion. "Listen, girl, I only have one sibling and one niece and she's right th-" The rest of his words were drowned out, however, by the young woman's sudden embrace. She tackled him, wrapping him in her arms and causing them both to tumble out of the sky. Her strength surprised Raditz more than the hug - and it was only as they crashed to the ground that he noticed she had a twitching, furry tail.

"You're...a Saiyan?" As the two straightened up onto the rocky ground, sitting awkwardly, the words came out slowly. Between himself, Kakarrot, Tullece, and Vegeta's entire crew, saying Freeza had not been thorough almost felt like an understatement.

"Uncle!" snapped the girl, sounding legitimately hurt and disappointed. "I know I'm older than the one you know, but it's me! Pan!"

Words tumbled out of Raditz's mouth, yet none of them were legible. The name that the young woman had given him had practically fried his thought process. He glanced at Piccolo, who looked equally flabbergasted, trying to recompose himself. The girl was looking directly into his eyes, hers still shining at the edges with the traces of tears.

"Pan!" said the younger Saiyan girl, flying around the head of the older woman. "That's my name too! And you called him Uncle as well?"

"I'm..going to need an explanation. Let's take a seat."

Raditz had waved off any attempt at the older Pan explaining anything until they were seated. Stones, overturned for the purpose of being used as benches, served as their seats. A hearth had been dug into the ground, neatly arranged rocks containing the kindling and flame over which a bubbling pot rested, cooking what had originally been planned to be the midday meal. Enjoying the scent of cooking food - Piccolo grumbling about the needless extravagance, holding only a bottle of water - Raditz's tail pointed around his waist towards the older Pan, who was seated directly next to him.

"now is as good a time for a break as any," said the older Saiyan male. "I'm going to need an explanation, kid. You look like Pan, but she's right there."

As if on cue, Pan popped up on Piccolo's shoulders, grinning from her perch.

The bigger Pan frowned. Placing a thin finger to her lips, her tail twitched. "I've never had to explain this to anyone, but Mama did say I was going to have to - especially if I ran into Papa first," she added, her tone dancing on a touch of cheekiness. "Uncle. Piccolo. I am Pan, that same little girl right there. I'm Pan from twenty years into the future."

"What?!"

The exclamation was unanimous from Piccolo and Raditz both, the former dropping his water bottle. It read ORANGE STAR WATER on the label.

"Twenty years into the future?!" Raditz frowned. "I've..heard of time travel, but I didn't think I'd see anyone foolhardly enough to do it. It makes sense it would be my own blood."

"Wait, you've seen this sort of thing before?" asked Piccolo, incredulously.

"No," Raditz shook his head. "I've heard of it. Laws do exist that govern time travel - the Galactic Patrol enforces them, or at least, they try to." He snickered. "You hear tell of these things in Freeza's Army; the more planets you conquer for him, the more rumours you hear about all sorts of esoteric technology." Checking on the cooking pot, Raditz resealed the lid. "Our team that is to say, Vegeta and the rest of us, specifically were sent after a planet who was reputed to have been working on time travelling technology."

"How did that pan out?" inquired Piccolo.

"Do you really think I'd be here, if I'd have access to time travel at any point? Do you think Vegeta would be?" Raditz laughed dryly. "No, it was all a load of rubbish. They were trying, certainly, but nothing ever came of it. And we wiped the population out like every other planet." He shrugged, leaning forward, perhaps reminiscing.

The younger Pan leaned over Piccolo's head, her gaze admonishing. "Uncle, you should say sorry for that."

"I...what?!" Raditz's eyes widened. "Kid, it's too late for that."

"You're not going to do something like that again?" the younger Saiyan girl stared daggers at her uncle.

Raditz sighed, and shook his head. "No, the time for that is well over. But we're getting sidetracked." Turning his attention back at the older Pan, he motioned for her to go on. "Suffice to say, I've got reason enough to believe you."

The older Pan grinned. She felt nostalgic, watching her younger self prod and poke at Raditz's every weakness. Nodding, she continued. "I didn't come back in time for a campfire dinner, though. I have a mission. In three years and two months from now, on the 11th of June, on an island 9 kilometres southwest of the Southern Capital, at 10 AM, two monsters begin their reign of terror over humanity."

"Monsters? Some of the Freeza's lot?"

Pan shook her head, staring at the ground. "No...they're a set of artificial humans - cyborgs - created here, on Earth, by Dr. Gero, the former head of Research and Development for the Red Ribbon Army."

"The...Red Ribbon Army?" A distant memory played in Raditz's head. "I could have sworn I encountered something like that when I arrived. A load of fools with a red ribbon emblazoned on their outfits. Pretty sure they even shouted it at me."

"The outfit itself has been trying to rebuild - what you encountered was an outpost, but not the core research centre used by Dr. Gero," explained the older Pan. "The original Red Ribbon Army was destroyed by Papa when he was a boy, and they've nursed a grudge against him ever since. Dr. Gero was especially passionate about it, and doubled his efforts on the existing Artificial Human Project to create one that could kill Papa."

"Of course it's Kakarrot's fault," groaned Raditz. So, his little brother had earned the ire of an entire military operation some years prior? That was certainly impressive. He never had properly asked Kakarrot how his life on Earth had been prior to their arrival, there'd been so much happening at once.

"In a way, yes," the older Pan nodded. "Anyway, these cyborgs began a reign of terror across the planet that's lasted even now. We had a few small victories..." She sighed. "...but nothing permanent. There was no stopping the mechanical monsters!" The fur on her tail spiked in anger, standing on end with every follicle.

"Wait...what happened to us?" Piccolo's eyes narrowed. "The way you're talking...it's as if we're dead."

Silence followed Piccolo's statement, a rush of air across the Highlands being shrilly audible as the weight of the assumption hovered over them all.

"You do."

The elder Pan seemed to hesitate, before continuing on. Now that she had said it, she didn't seem to unable to stop, even though Raditz and Piccolo were staring at her as if she'd sprouted horns. "Everyone dies after the cyborgs make their first arrival on Earth. Piccolo, Uncle, Tenshin, Kuririn, Yamcha...you all meet your end at the hands of the cyborgs. I'm the only one who survived." She said all of this quickly, her voice cracking with the effort of putting it out plainly.

"...what about Kakarrot?"

"Papa..." the elder Pan frowned. "Papa's situation is more complicated." Rummaging in her jacket pocket, she whipped out a small capsule. "Truth be told, I was hoping to run into Papa here. But the time machine isn't precise, it seems, in terms of dates." Tossing the capsule to Raditz, the Saiyan woman continued. "Papa doesn't die fighting cyborgs. He dies earlier, as a result of a heart contagion he contracted out in space."

"A hea...he dies from illness?!" Raditz thundered. Far from being empathetic, he sounded enraged. "A Saiyan, copping it to sickness!?"

"Do you simply not?" Piccolo asked, looking at Raditz in confusion. "Even the hardiest tree wilts from sickness."

"It isn't that we don't, it's just rare," Raditz explained. "And...and it's undignified! No Saiyan worth their salt would rather die in their bed than die in battle!"

"Whatever the disease was," cut across the elder Pan, before Piccolo could interject, "there was no cure for it in the present timeline here. Even moreso as the disease was extra terrestrial. But Mama is a genus, so she managed to engineer a cure. Too late to save Papa here, but she thought it might help prevent it from spreading in our time. We already had enough to deal with."

"I can't believe this..." grumbled Raditz. "I die at the hands of some assembly line piece of junk, and Kakarrot cops it in bed!?"

"That's why I came back, Uncle," said Pan. "To give you the forewarning, and the cure, so you can prepare for the cyborg assault!"

"Yes, that makes sense," said Piccolo, nodding.

"Why don't we just blow the baddies now?" said the younger Pan, her eyes shining at the prospect. "If they're bad people, we can get back at 'em now, and then there won't be any robots at all!"

"As much as I'd like to, even now, I don't know where his laboratory is located," shrugged her elder counterpart. "I'm sure Uncle and Papa would rather face them head-on anyway, but the pragmatic solution won't work here. Dr. Gero and the Red Ribbon Army's remnants have many bases, and they never seem to stay in one spot for long. We're tried scouring before, but it isn't so simple as simply asking for directions."

Piccolo grinned. "Part of me is glad. I want to test my mettle against these monsters. If they manage to take me down in this future of yours...let's see how powerful I can become, and then I'll really put them through their paces."

Raditz nodded in agreement. He may have been a coward under Vegeta and Freeza, but that had changed. This time here on Earth, with Kakarrot and the others...he hated to admit how it brought out this new side of him, as a fighter. He'd rather face these cyborgs head on too, than just blow their hiding spot up, even if that made more sense to him in the end. "Which means...I want you to fight me, Pan."

There was no doubt to which Pan he was speaking to. The older, futuristic Pan blinked in surprise, before jumping to her feet. Her tail swished through the air, and she'd nearly overturned the pot in her haste. "You want to fight me, Uncle?! Like a sparring session?"

"Something like that," said Raditz, also rising. "If I face you now, then I can get a good idea of how I measure up to these cyborgs now - and where I'll be looking to improve in the coming years. You don't mind me hogging the fun time, do you?" He added as an aside to Piccolo.

The Nameccian shook his head. "Watching two Saiyans fight when the planet isn't at stake might make for an interesting show."

"That settles it then," said Raditz. Uncle and niece leapt away from the campsite, to a nearby rise of sharp plateaus along the Highlands. Raditz and Pan each perched themselves on an opposing slant of rock, the wind chilling their bones. Soon, the frigid temperature would be forgotten, as the battle heated their very souls.

"If you truly want to test your mettle, Uncle, I won't go easy," said Pan. Her blue eyes began to emit an emerald glow. A rush of air, separate from the Yunzabit Highlands currents, wafted up from Pan's body. Her jacket began to rustle in this newfound gust, and her lavender tresses stood rigid on end, lengthening. Their lavender hue shifted, shining a vivid, bright gold. Matching flames enveloped her body, swirling and flashing gold. "You'll test yourself against a Super Saiyan!"

Raditz was astonished. The pressure exuding off of his futuristic niece was incredible, and her ki was unbearably intense. Honestly, too much so - he felt the planet shaking from the aftermath of her transformation. Yet still, the Super Saiyan transformation on someone else was stunning to behold. Kakarrot had yet to really test it against him, so he'd never had the full privilege of facing the pinnacle of Saiyan power. Yet now he could. Raditz's own muscles bulked, his hair growing rigid, as a coral aura began to burst to life around his body.

"Now that's a nostalgic sight," said the Super Saiyan Pan, grinning. "You were still the only one who could do that in the future."

"So I never become a Super Saiyan, hm?" inquired Raditz. "I thought it was only Kakarrot, but clearly..." He gestured at her, not needing to finish the sentence.

"Spoilers, Uncle," Pan chided.

Even Piccolo stared in awe. The ki she was giving off was tremendous. Piccolo's mind wandered to the young girl sitting on his shoulder. Did she have this much power sitting inside her? He knew she was strong, but this was enough to rival Son - no, it might be stronger than when they'd last gone all out. Piccolo also had no true idea of the depth of his Super Saiyan power.

It almost makes me wish I'd tried to use that brat to conquer the world, when I still had a feeling for it, the Nameccian thought wryly.

The Saiyans adopted a fighting stance, each staring towards the other.

It was Pan who moved first, lunging from her perch towards Raditz. Fist cocked, ready to strike, she threw her hand forward...yet found herself stopping dead short of her Uncle's face.

"Uncle, we're supposed to be sparring. Why didn't you move?"

"You're still green, aren't you?" asked Raditz, eyeing her with something resembling disappointment. "I didn't feel anything coming behind that attack, even though you were moving. This is a sparring match, and we are family, but I want you to strike me like you mean it; don't look down on me girl, simply because you're a Super Saiyan."

Pan faltered, her green eyes blinking rapidly. "I...uh...y-yes, sir!"

Raditz's coral-hued aura flared, in time for Pan to redouble her assault. He sensed her full intent to attack now, and responded in kind. Raditz's arm slammed into Pan's, who forced him back with surprising ease. Their clash sent shockwaves through the Highlands, cracking the rock beneath their feet. Pan knelt, leaning forward and sweeping her leg along the ground. Raditz, already forced back on the defensive, felt his footing broken, Pan's sweep kick throwing him off his feet.

Airborne, the Saiyan tried to catch himself, yet found himself colliding with an extending crimson staff. The Nyoibō collided with his side, sending Raditz's careering into the nearest, jutting rock formation. It splintered and shattered, raining debris onto Raditz's prone figure. Shifting in place, Pan closed the distance between herself and Raditz in a single bound; leaning onto her right hand, Pan slammed her foot into Raditz, timing it at the exact moment he was beginning to sit upright.

"She...instantly read his moves and countered him," Piccolo gaped. "And...she's already crushing him!?"

So this is the power of a Super Saiyan...? Raditz flipped himself in mid-air, steading his flight, trying to pull out more power from his own abilities. You've been holding out on me, Kakarrot...! Pan dashed to the ground, bounding towards Raditz asthe ki around his arm began to crackle and flare. Raising his arm high, Raditz swung it in forward, lobbing a sphere of pink ki with bio-electricity snapping in every direction.

Pan extended a hand, pointing her finger towards Raditz's attack, index extended outward, thumb skyward.

"Magan!"

Light burst from her fingertip, an orange sphere of ki rocketing forward to meet with Raditz's own. The orbs met in mid-air, crushing against one another. Energy whipped away from each sphere, yet it was Pan's that proved itself stronger, ripping Raditz's sphere to pieces, and continuing its trajectory. The Magan exploded on impact with Raditz, creating a fine cloud of dust and debris. As the cloud settled, Raditz crouched on one knee, his aura still burning, yet it was clear he had taken the full brunt of the technique.

"Yeah...we'll call it here," said Raditz, one hand on his knee as he stared, smiling mildly, at his niece. "If you can overpower me that easily, but these cyborgs are getting the best of you...we're really screwed, aren't we?"

The future Pan felt herself relax, the tension normally associated with combat ebbing away. The tingling sensation in her back, always accompanied by the Super Saiyan transformation, receded as well, her blonde locks being reduced to their normal lavender hue. Taking a seat on the hard stone, Raditz was surprised to see that she was smiling.

"That's why I came back, Uncle," said Pan, still smiling wide. "Now you've all been forewarned, so big changes are gonna happen! Even though Mama isn't sure if it's going to happen to our timeline, at least we can make another world that has a chance." Her smile faded abruptly, a dark look settling over her face. "If even one world has a chance, then everything - all the sacrifices, all Mama's effort, will have been worth it."

Raditz stared at her in silence. It wasn't that he was unable to comprehend struggle, far from it. The Saiyans lives under Freeza had been nothing but struggle, terror, and a fight for survival. That aside, the Saiyans themselves had also caused many struggles, some virtually identical to the situation Pan herself was going through now. Raditz was not a noble man, yet now, he knew he wasn't wholly selfish either. These emotions churning around inside him were difficult to process.

"We'll do what a Saiyan does best," said Raditz, mirroring his future niece and taking a seat. "Meet the challenge with our fists."

A/N:
LastationLover5000: So it's rare for me to be the one to pen an entire chapter, but I am of the firm belief that, if a chapter feels right to end at a certain moment, you end it there. Anything more is additional and can be split into a new chapter. Besides, my picking up of extra interests - studying a foreign language and embracing my love of drawing - has kept you poor readers waiting long enough, to be honest. But, I can officially say with this chapter, if not the chapter or two prior, that we're about to transition into the next arc from here, and what a way to do it. Not with Trunks, who wouldn't make sense, or a future child you've never met, but someone you have context for - our Pan. She's a different person from Trunks, in both personality as well as skillset, but I hope you come to like her future incarnation's traits, as her present one is shaped by the new timeline coming. Ah, the Androids. We're going to have so much fun. Pan's technique, the Magan (魔丸) is very much a Yu Yu Hakusho reference, as you all know how much I love those. Alright! We'll see you soon!

Demod20: A lot has happened in the recent chapter. Not only is Goku on a winning streak, but he's also got a price on his head with the Emperor watching to see how this all plays out. Meanwhile, our favorite munchkin has her future self drop by to lend her aid to her favorite uncles and give a warning of a terrible future. I'm excited to see how this all plays out from here on. See you all in the next update!