Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon ball Z.
Chapter 58
Slug stumbled forward in pain as he tried to recover from the surprise attack the boy had just landed. He spun around to face the warrior who had just declared himself a super Saiyan demon. There was no such thing, Slug was sure of that. Yet, he had no way to explain what this transformation was. His eyes widened when he realized the boy was no longer in front of him. He looked around wildly, using all his senses to track him down. His efforts were unnecessary, as not a second passed before Gohan made his location known by planting his knee in Slug's abdomen.
"GAH!" The air left the ancient warrior, and he sank to his knees. Gohan looked down at his opponent, contemplating his next move. Without a word, the teen shook his head and walked away.
Slug was stunned by this mockery. No one, not even Turles or Cooler, had dared underestimate him like this. Yet, this stripling was acting like he wasn't worth the time to kill? Gohan looked up into space with an odd expression, ignoring Slug struggling to his feet.
"You used Kili as the basis for the dark cloud, didn't you?" He asked the Namekian.
"W-what?"
"If I had known, I would have transformed before I even came here." Gohan stated. "It's like the cloud isn't even there anymore. I can see right through it." He turned back to Slug. "I can sense my brother and Trunks on Namek. Count yourself lucky that Turles hasn't hurt them, or anyone else yet. You've been pretty reasonable for the most part, so stay out of my way and I'll let you live."
Gohan wanted to learn more about some of the things that Slug had said, but he had more important things to take care of. He could always find Slug later if he wanted to now that he could see through the dark cloud.
"You'll… let me live?" Slug couldn't comprehend this boy. What was his angle? No, none of that mattered. This brat needed to die. If there was one shred of good left in the ancient tyrant, it was rooted in the pride he had in his people, and the fierce loyalty to the ancient secrets they knew. This boy and Turles were a danger to the Namekians.
Gohan took Slug's silence as an acceptance of his mercy and took to the skies. His mind was focused on the boys, so he barely noticed the ki blast rocketing toward him from below. He barrel rolled to avoid it, then a green arm extended, latching onto his ankle, and tugging him down. Gohan pulled his leg up and was about to chop the hand off with a knife hand, but a second Slug appeared above him, kicking him in the face and letting the first Slug slam him to the ground.
With a snarl, the teen used his kili to heat up the air around his ankle, creating a black fire and engulfing the Namekians hand and arm. He jumped up, doing a backflip out of the crater he had made and watched the fire chase up the length of the arm toward its owner. Slug 1 chopped his arm off before it reached him, growing a replacement immediately. Gohan started to charge, but Slug 2 came from above with both hands ready to hammer the teen into the ground. Gohan grabbed both wrists, countering with a kick to the sternum before he spun around to block an oncoming lariat from Slug 1. The attack drove the teen back, but he delivered a spinning round house to one opponent's temple that sent him flying, and caught the other by the neck, throwing him like a javelin at the other Slug. Gohan was about to pursue, when he felt incredible pain overcome him, centered on his back. He spun around in fury to see a third Slug smirking with an outstretched hand. Slug one and two soon returned, the three opponents surrounding the Saiyan.
"Guess you don't have much of a will to live, huh?" Gohan growled. "How do you know the multiform technique anyway?"
"Arrogant brat." Sneered one Namekian. "I've lived for over a thousand years and have traversed countless systems. My knowledge of techniques is unsurpassed."
"Is that so." Gohan nodded. "Then I guess I'll have to handle you the old-fashioned way."
Dropping to his demon stance, the three Slugs began to circle him at an incredible speed, creating the illusion that they had once again multiplied. Unfortunately, this tactic had been used countless times on him during his spars with Piccolo. This Namekian was a lot stronger than his mentor, but that wouldn't stop the young warrior.
He locked onto one image, correctly identifying it as a solid form, and landed a right straight on the jaw. He swayed to the side, avoiding a kick from behind, and spun intime to divert an oncoming knife hand. What followed was a hurricane, as Gohan was forced to contend with 3 enemies working in perfect harmony. To his surprise, while the clones were weaker than the original, they possessed a higher fraction of energy than a third each. Gohan suspected that this was a variant of the technique he knew, and this could pose a problem.
He dodged and blocked, spinning around fluidly in the center of a tornado made of 12 deadly limbs. Just as he had gotten used to the rhythm of his attackers, his counterattack was routed by the arms twisting around like snakes to become unpredictable in their movements. Razor sharp nails grazed his cheek, drawing a trickle of blood, while a leg flailed toward his temple. He ducked, only to be hit in the stomach by a winding hammer fist, then he dodged a chop aimed at his neck, only to walk into an elbow to the face. Part of Gohan was irritated that this fighter was starting to get the better of him and wasting his time. However, another part was boiling with excitement. It had been so long since he was able to really cut loose. Slug had a thousand years' worth of experience, so it was no wonder that he was able to push Gohan like he was. The teen was eager to see just how far his opponent could let him take his new powers.
He jumped up, trying to get some space, but the trio was relentless. Two eye beams, a mouth blast, and ki bomb all shot at the teen. With an excited grin, he raised his hands over his head.
"MASENKO HA!" The yellow beam had a black hue as he fired it and the blast easily overpowered the three attacks. He saw two Slugs scatter, then spun around to catch the third's leg. With a vice grip on his enemy, he headed straight for the planet, ready to use slug as a posthole digger. Just before he reached the ground, another Slug came at him with a flying kick. Gohan brought his captive forward and used him as a shield, allowing him to take the full force of the attack. He landed on his feet and brought his guard up just in time to block a massive energy wave. The wave engulfed him, and soon the other two Namekians added their power to the attack, and Gohan felt his feet skidding through the dirt at an alarming speed.
"GrrrrRYAAAAAAHHHHH!" His Kiai sent a wave of energy from his body, and he brought his arms to the side, splitting the enemy wave in two. With the attack over with, Gohan gave the enemy a dangerous smile.
All three Slugs stood shocked by the massive amount of Kili the boy had just emitted with a mere shout. In fact, they were shocked that all the energy the boy had used since his transformation seemed to be Kili. That was almost impossible, unless…
"I get it now." The middle Slug growled. "You must have dabbled with the demon realm. That explains why you're overflowing with Kili. You've tried to contact the Majin, haven't you?"
"Not quite." Gohan flashed a smile that infuriated Slug. "You weren't lying though. You really do have some interesting knowledge. Too bad it won't do you any good since you don't seem to have learned your lesson."
"We'll see about that." The Slugs charged the boy again, with two of them trying to flank him from either side. Gohan didn't even bother getting to his stance this time.
"DIE!"
*FWEEEEEEET!*
"""GAAAAH!"""
All three Slugs collapsed to the dust as they were crippled by the whistle of the demonic fighter. While Slug may have overcome part of one weakness that the multiform possessed, he had done nothing to mitigate the other major flaw. The technique amplified the senses, including hearing. Before the whistling was painful, but now the sound was much louder, and the pain was multiplied by three.
*FWEEEEEEET!*
The whistle continued unbroken, and with far greater intensity than it sounded before. Gohan made his way to the nearest opponent, kicked him in the jaw so he flew straight up. Then he jumped to follow, and bicycle kicked him toward the furthest doppelganger. He landed near another Slug, grabbed him by the antennae and spun him around, forcing the victim to experience a double dose of excruciating agony. He released the Namekian and with a burst of speed, he followed both bodies as they converged on the final Namekian. Lining the trio up perfectly, he wound up his fist for a haymaker, and let it rip, pounding all three Slugs into the ground, forcing them into one being and shattering an enormous chunk off of the planet in the process.
The opponent had landed some distance away from Gohan, but he was unwilling to give him the chance to recover.
"Kame… Haaameeee… HAAAAAAAA!" The massive purplish-blue light shook the entire solar system.
Slug saw the impending doom and prayed that his hidden ability would be able to divert such massive energy. "Onska… ONSKARA ROPECATO!"
At his words, the air around Slug began to shimmer and strange symbols appeared between him and the attack. When the Kamehameha collided with the symbols, it stopped for a brief moment, as if struggling against a barrier. Slug held up his hands to bolster his defense, but felt his magic giving way to the superior force.
Undeterred by the barrier, Gohan simply poured in more energy. Slug was violently pushed back as the barrier began to crack under the assault. With an incredible effort, he forced his arms to the side and the Kamehameha wave changed trajectory by 90 degrees. To his horror, before the attack was completely redirected, the barrier cracked and the remaining blast blew past Slug, searing off his right arm, leg, and a chunk of his midsection.
Gohan ceased the attack with wide eyes. Stunned that his attack had been routed.
Slug fell to the ground exhausted, but still alive. 'Damn kid! That spell should have turned it back on him. Just what is he?'
Knowing he had little time before the boy renewed his assault, he waved his hand over his damaged half and muttered another spell.
"Pappiitao." The spell sped up his regeneration, and even healed his other wounds, though it did little to reduce his fatigue. The Namekian stood up and before he let anything else happen, he tore his own ears off. He wouldn't let the brat overwhelm him with his cheap trick again. His reprieve was ended as Gohan had already closed the gap between them with a fist that Slug was barely able to take on his guard. The Saiyan followed up with a storm of punches that put the Namekian off balance.
Gohan was making it clear that he had the advantage in power. Slug was able to block the majority of his blows at first, but Gohan continued to strike faster, and faster, until every single punch hit its mark, pummeling every square inch of Slug. Once again, Slug had no other recourse but to resort to his magic.
"BOOMSCA MACO!" Blinding white flames washed over Gohan, and the teen reflexively brought his hands up to guard his face. A flame coated fist burned against his stomach, and another caught him on the chin. He reeled back, his eyes finally opened in time to catch a spinning back hand. The flames licked his face and he winced from the heat. He blocked a kick with his knee, though the flames burnt his leg. A second kick came, and he opted to jump over this one, however another attack came at him from above. Kicking both legs out at once, he connected with Slugs chest, forcing him away, at the expense of his shoes disintegrating and receiving painful burns on his feet.
He flipped back and landed on one knee.
"You want a firefight!?" Gohan roared in aggravation. "Then welcome to hell!" Standing up, he thrust a palm to meet an oncoming fiery fist. Before it hit, a burst of black fire erupted from the demon's palm and black and white flames shot in every direction. Slug continued his attack, only for Gohan to match him again with his hellfire. The pattern continued, with each repeated exchange sending waves of white and black fire to scorch the planet's surface.
The fires spread with such speed and intensity, amplified with every new strike, that they quickly boiled the rocky surface into molten lava. None of this was noticed by Gohan or Slug. The planet itself melted away as the two continued their attempts to immolate the other.
Break
Goten and Nazz made their way through a dark cave, the only light was from the ki in the female Saiyan's hand.
"Are you sure the dragon ball is in here?" Nazz questioned.
Goten thought for a moment before he answered. "I dunno." He finally shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, at least your honest." The girl shook her head with a smile.
"I'm not really sure how to follow my heart." Goten admitted. "But I think this might be the right way."
"What makes you say that?"
"Just a feeling, I guess…" Goten didn't know how to explain it, but he could feel something different about this cave. "Besides, magic treasures are usually in caves."
"They are?" This was not something that Nazz had ever heard of before. "How do you know that? Did your brother tell you?"
"Well, kind of. He and my mom always read me stories about that kind of thing. Magic rings, legendary swords, mystical gems. There almost always in a cave."
"Huh… Yeah, I guess that makes sense. I used to hide my snacks in caves all the time so my dad wouldn't sneak into them."
"Yeah, caves are good hiding spots." Goten nodded. "And that's not even including the guardian."
Nazz quirked an eyebrow. "Guardian? What Guardian?"
"Well, in the books, there was usually something guarding the treasure. Like a troll, or a dragon, or a spirit."
Goten kept walking, but stopped when he realized that Nazz was no longer with him. He turned around to see that she was frozen in place. Even in the dim light, her face was noticeably paler than before.
"Hey, why'd you stop?"
"O-oh, no reason. Just… Did you say 'spirit? Like, you know… A g-ghost?"
"I guess so." Goten shrugged. "I never really thought about it before."
"But it's not necessarily a g-g… You know? You said it could be a dragon, or a troll, right?"
"I don't know. But you're pretty strong, so I don't think it really matters."
"Yeah… Right, I can handle anything." She said. She slapped her cheeks and started to walk forward with purpose. She couldn't show weakness to the kid. She was the (Self-proclaimed) toughest Saiyan, female or otherwise. Besides, there may be nothing guarding the ball at all. Right?
*Mooaaaaaannn!*
She stopped dead, and the hair on her tail bristled.
"Hey," She smiled at Goten nervously. "If you're not sure it's in here, then maybe we could just look somewhere else. I mean, what's the sense of wasting our time, am I right?"
"But what if it is in here." Goten replied earnestly. He may not be sure it was a dragon ball, but he definitely felt something in this cave.
Nazz thought about this. "But if you aren't completely sure-"
*MOOOOAAAAAANNN!*
Goten looked down the tunnel toward the sound and tilted his head. Something about that moan sounded vaguely familiar to him. "Hey, Nazz, I think something's in here." He looked up at his companion. "Woah. Are you ok?"
"Y-y-yep…" The Saiyan girl's face was now pale blue, and her entire frame was rigidly straight.
Goten stared at Nazz, wondering what was wrong with her. Then it occurred to him that she looked a lot like how Zangya looked when she saw a snake.
"Nazz? Are you scared?"
"What!?" She snapped at him. Her fear of looking weak outweighed her previous fear for the moment. "Who do you think I am? I'm Nazz, a Saiyan warrior! I'm not scared of anything! Hahaha!" She shot Goten a side long glance. His expression wasn't one of judgement or ridicule. It almost looked like he was concerned.
"It's ok." Goten said consolingly. "You don't have to be embarrassed. Everyone's scared of something. I used to be scared of ghosts."
"I'M NOT SCARED!" Her head tripled in size and her denial shook the entire cave.
Goten wiped the spit off his face. She took a deep breath.
"But what if it is a ghost that made that sound from earlier? It's not like you can beat up a ghost, right?"
"I don't know." He scratched his head. "I don't think we need to worry about it though. That moaning didn't sound like a ghost to me."
"How do you know what a ghost sounds like?" She asked skeptically.
"Well… I just mean that I think I've heard that sound before and it wasn't from a ghost." It actually sounded like one of his friends.
"Oh. That's good." Nazz breathed a sigh of relief. "Not that I was scared, you know." Goten nodded and the pair continued on.
After another few minutes of silence, Goten spoke.
"I think you could probably fight a ghost." He said. "Gohan used to tell me that he would beat up any ghosts that bothered me whenever I was scared of them. It always made me feel better."
"Really?" Nazz followed her young companion, brightening up. If you really could fight a ghost, then maybe they weren't so scary. "You know, I'm starting to like this brother of yours. I take back what I said about him being a bum."
"Yeah. Like I said, he's the best in the universe. And the strongest."
"Strongest in the universe, huh?" Nazz chuckled. "You think he's stronger than me?"
"Way stronger." Goten nodded without hesitation.
"What about Turles? You don't really think he's stronger than the strongest Saiyan in history, do you?"
"Turles wouldn't last a minute against my brother." Goten was annoyed at someone like Turles being put anywhere close to his brother.
"Heh, sure kid. Whatever you say."
"I'm serious!" Goten insisted. "Just you wait! When we're done here, I'll find a way to call my brother and he'll show Turles who's boss!"
"Ok, ok." Nazz held her hands up defensively. "Sounds like a plan. Even if he isn't as strong as you say, I guess having another Saiyan around my age wouldn't be so bad." Chokly wasn't bad, but the males close to her age were total pigs. Not in the good way either. "Hey, where are you going?"
Goten had taken off running. "I saw something up ahead!"
"Hey, wait up!" She sped up to catch him and started to keep pace with him. Soon the tunnel they were in became a wide cavern and the pair came to a screeching halt. "Woah!"
Up against the far wall of the cavern a mountain of sparkles were piled up. Nazz looked closer and realized that these sparkly things were mostly unrefined gemstones. "I guess you were right kid. This cave is filled with treasure. Hey. Slow down!"
Goten was too excited to stop, having already climbed halfway up the pile of gems. "It's here Nazz! It's really here! Look!"
The female Saiyan looked and at the top of the pile was a perfectly round orb, giving off the faintest of orange glows. "No way. Is that one of them? Alright kid!"
"I can't believe we actually found one so fast!" Goten occasionally slipped and tripped over the treasures, but he was too excited to watch his footing.
He had almost reached the orb when a giant, horned, snakelike head appeared from behind the pile. Goten froze, inches from the dragon ball, as the blazing red eyes of a green dragon stared directly into his.
Before he could react, a thunderous roar shook the cavern, and the young hybrid covered his ears. With his hands occupied, Goten was defenseless as the dragon swiped the boy with his tail, sending him flying into the cavern wall with a crash. The dragon jumped off its treasure with a thud and reared up on its hind legs while taking a huge breath of air. Goten could only stare as the fire built up in the dragon's mouth before streaming toward him.
At the last minute, Nazz appeared, grabbed the younger hybrid, and sped them both to the other end of the cave. She set her companion down with a worried look.
"You ok, Goten?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Goten shook his head. "He just took me by surprise is all."
"Well, he's gonna pay for that!" She turned around and cracked her knuckles. "Just sit back and watch the action, kid."
"Wait!" Goten insisted. "Let me handle it."
Nazz gave him a confused look before she laughed. "Oh, I get it. Trying to show big sis how tough you are, huh? Alright, little man. Tear this monster a new one."
Goten nodded before taking his stance. The dragon had turned around and zeroed in on Goten. It didn't know how the little intruder had escaped its fire, but it was in no mood to deal with little thieves. It roared again before charging Goten. The Saiyan charged as well, but right before the two collided, he dove between the beast's legs and slid to the midsection, jumped up and flipped the dragon to its back in a fluid motion.
"Alright Goten! Now finish it off!"
But as the creature thrashed around under him, Goten showed no sign of attacking. Instead, he reached down with both hands toward a spot between its left oblique and its upper left thigh. He started to pull on something, which for a moment caused the dragon to thrash more violently. Finally, with a grunt, Goten freed a jagged, spikey rock from the beasts scales, and the thrashing immediately stopped. Goten hopped off the creature and threw the rock away. Rolling to its stomach, the dragon once again faced his opponent, only this time, its eyes were clear and blue.
"There, now." The small Saiyan stated. "That feels better, doesn't it."
The dragon opened its mouth, causing Nazz to tense up. "Goten look out!"
But her concern was unnecessary, as the dragon only started licking its benefactor with fondness, eliciting uncontrollable giggles from him.
"H-hey! Haha, c-cut it out already! You're welcome, ok? Haha!"
Nazz had never seen anything like this and remained too stunned to even comment on the large 4-star dragon ball that the dragon willingly parted with. As the pair made their way to the entrance of the cave, she finally recovered enough to ask the young boy a question.
"How did you know to do that, anyway?"
"Do what?" Goten asked while admiring the dragon ball.
"How'd you know it was hurt? I would have just killed the thing."
"Oh, that. My friend Icarus is just like Mr. green back there. I always have to help him remove stuff from his scales whenever he plays in caves to look for treasure. He always moans like we heard before. It makes dragons really cranky, so I wanted to help."
Aside from the fact that the kid regularly hung out with a dragon, Nazz couldn't help but think that this was one weird kid. "You… Don't really act like any Saiyan I've ever heard of."
"Oh…" Goten looked down. "Is that bad?" he asked innocently.
Nazz thought for a moment, before she smiled. "No." She reached down and ruffled his hair. "No, I don't think it's bad at all."
Break
On the other side of the planet, Trunks flew at top speed, frantically through every crevice, searched every hilltop, and scoured the plains in search of the dragon balls. All the while his frustration was building, and he couldn't help but direct it at his former companions.
"Dumb Goten, and that stupid girl." He growled. "How is following your heart going to do anything. They probably just want to goof off and leave me to do all the work! How am I supposed to find all seven by the time limit?" He fired a ki blast at a large rock formation and scanned the rubble for anything orange. "They could be anywhere, and how am I supposed to find them without the radar?"
He sped over the ocean, parting the water as he skimmed over the surface. "'We forgot the food!' Well, your dumb face was supposed to grab the radar, not the food!"
Trunks stopped his rant when he noticed something glinting under the surface of the water. He was somewhat distracted from his anger as he noticed how clear the water was. He could see into the depths for quite a far way down, though it did become dark eventually. Still, it was clear enough to allow a faint orange glow to emanate from the deep, creating a stark contrast to the rest of the abyssal blackness.
"Ha! Looks like I don't need those two bozos after all!" Trunks dove full force into the ocean, and it didn't take him long to reach the source of the glow. However, what he found was not what he had hoped. Lighting up some ki in his hands to see better, he saw that the orange thing was not a dragon ball at all. Hundreds of giant, orange balls were clustered all over an undersea plateau, but not a single one had a star. These were nothing but big orange pearls.
Anger returned in full force and Trunks let out a bubbly scream of frustration. Unable to contain himself anymore, he grabbed a pearl and hurled it as far as he could. Then he started stopping around, kicking away any orange ball in his path. The experience was cathartic at first.
Then, up from below the plateau, a gigantic crab climbed over the edge. Little did Trunks know that these pearls were actually the crab's eggs. So distracted was he by his venting that he did not notice the creature at all. He picked up another egg and was about to smash it into the ground when a pincer crushed him around the middle and yanked him up. The surprise made him let out a gasp, and panic started to set in as the crustacean flailed him around.
Out of breath and disoriented, Trunks had significantly more difficulty getting out of the vice grip than he normally would have. His grip kept slipping off the pincers as his hands worked frantically to get a purchase. Finally, in a moment of desperation, he fired a Ki blast that severed the animal's arm. Freed from his attacker, Trunks, being his father's son, opted not to make for the surface, but rather to gloat with a rude hand gesture. This of course distracted him from the second, larger crab that had crawled up the opposite side. This one grabbed him with both claws, and any air that Trunks had left was squeezed out of him.
Out of oxygen, and too panicked by the situation to think straight, Trunks flailed his arms to try to swim up, rather than propel himself with ki. The other crab was coming at him and reeled its remaining claw back in order to strike the invader. Before the crab could attack, something came speeding down like a torpedo, leaving a torrent of bubbles in its wake, and smashed into the crab, killing it instantly. Through the torrent, a massive energy blast shot out, barely missing Trunks and disintegrating the second crustacean.
Then, Trunks felt himself yanked by the back of his shirt and hauled up to the sky. In an instant, he was out of the water and thrust onto the shore of a small island. The Saiyan gasped and sputtered while on all fours, tears of panic starting to mingle with the saltwater on his face.
"Disappointing."
Trunks stopped his gasping and jerked his gaze up to see none other than Turles standing over him with crossed arms and an expression of displeasure.
"Turles! I-I-"
"Save it." The Saiyan leader cut him off. "I suppose I shouldn't have expected more than this level from a half breed child." He sighed. There was no tone of malice in his words, but Trunks thought he heard genuine disappointment.
"No! That was all just an accident! They snuck up on me!" The boy insisted.
"And you were weak enough to let them? Would the true prince of Saiyans be so inept in combat?"
"I-I just…"
"Without strength, Saiyans are nothing! How do you expect to rule if you let something so simple overwhelm you? Or do you just expect that others will always cover for your weakness?"
"NO!" Trunks yelled. "I'm not weak!"
"You are weak!" Turles shot back. "Even your little friend is stronger than you. You couldn't protect yourself from these insects. You couldn't stop that woman from being taken by Cooler's men. If you don't get stronger, there's no way you'll be able to save your dead father."
"GRAH!" Trunks lunged at Turles, only to be swiftly kneed in the gut. The boy fell to his face and clenched his stomach in pain.
"You have the Saiyan fire, I'll give you that. But it takes more than spirit to be strong." Turles squatted down and lifted Trunks' head to look him in the eyes. "You have promise, little prince. I can help you achieve what you want. I can make you strong. Make you a true Saiyan."
Trunks growled something inaudible.
"What was that?" Turles asked with a smile.
"I want to be strong!" Trunks shouted. He needed to be strong, not just for himself. He needed to look after Goten and make sure he got back to his mom. He needed to save 18. Most importantly, he had to make his father proud. He couldn't show him this pathetic weakness."
"Good. Follow me, little prince, and the Saiyan legacy will once again spread across the universe. But first, you must do one thing for me."
"I can't find the dragon balls, alright!" Trunks spat in frustration. "I've looked all over, but I just can't."
"We'll leave that task to your little friend." Turles shrugged. "But we both know when the balls are gathered, we'll need a Namekian to make them work."
"Yeah…" Trunks vaguely wondered how he knew that fact.
"And the Namekians don't seem very eager to share their dragon with us, do they?"
"No… No, they don't." Trunks had been thinking about this already. Why hide from them when they were obviously friendly? Why wouldn't they help them find the dragon balls? They couldn't possibly be scared of two kids. Just like Trunks had thought, they must be keeping the dragon balls for themselves. "That Moori didn't even bother trying to help us."
Turles smiled. "Then your task is to change their minds."
Break
The battle raged on planet Slug, with almost no solid ground left to stand on. The fires of battle turning the entire landscape into a hellish nightmare. Above the ocean of lava, Gohan and Slug were still trading flame covered blows. While Slug's magic flame was holding its own against Gohan's hell fire, it was clear that one fighter was gaining an advantage.
"TAKE THIS!" Gohan coated both his hands in his Masenko and black flame as he brought them in a jackhammer fist down on his opponent's fiery guard. The combination of the two techniques demolished Slugs guard and the Saiyan's hands cut through the green arms like butter.
"GRAH!" Slug roared in pain.
"Pappiitao!" The Namekian yelled, accelerating his healing. The spell may have been effective, but the time it took to cast allowed Gohan a follow up strike, landing an axe kick directly on the sorcerer's head and rocketing him into the lava with an enormous splash.
Gohan took a moment to catch his breath. His clothes were in tatters, and he was covered in burns. While he was on the winning side of the conflict, he had never had to fight a magician before. These spells were just prolonging the fight. As much fun as this was, he needed to get to Goten and Trunks. He could sense that they were still ok for now, but to keep them that way, he needed to wrap this up. He looked down at the molten pool and sighed. "We'll finish this later." He was turning to leave, when he saw the green hand shoot out of the lava.
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding?" Before the hand grabbed him, he caught it by the wrist and yanked it as hard as he could, pulling the owner toward him at a terrific speed. "Just let me go to Namek already!"
Slug snarled in response and fired his eye beams and Gohan fired a special beam canon from his free hand. The corkscrew beam collided with the lasers and sent them off in separate directions while continuing its course toward Slug. The Namekian tried to escape, but Gohan whipped his arm in such a way that his head was right in the path of the canon. Unwilling to give up here, Slug raised his free hand and sliced through his arm at the shoulder. He touched the ground and jumped away just in time for the oncoming beam to miss.
Gohan pursued his opponent, happy to show him the same relentlessness he had received earlier. The Saiyan landed a flying drop kick on Slug's abdomen, driving him down with such speed that his body formed a hole in the lava as it went straight through, colliding on what was left of the crust. Before the lava coalesced, Slug used his one hand to grab at Gohan's neck, but the hybrid caught it. As Slug was retracting his arm, bringing himself closer to his opponent, Gohan raised his other hand which held a glowing yellow orb.
"MASENKO HA!" He fired the blast straight into Slugs face. Slug fired back with a mouth canon, but Gohan's attack overpowered it. He held slug down while pouring deadly energy onto his head. He was too busy to notice the fist from the arm he was holding extend and impact with his temple, knocking him way from his victim.
He shook the attack off and quickly noticed that his opponent had disappeared. Wasting no time, he located his Ki high above him. Looking up, he saw the Namekian making elaborate arm motions in the air. Anticipating another spell, Gohan raced to cut him off.
"Butla-ashta!" Slug's pained voice cried out. Before Gohan could reach him, he found himself surrounded by impenetrable darkness. Gohan stopped for a moment, trying to find his bearings. He fired a Ki blast at where Slug was, but he couldn't even see the light from that.
"I'll admit you've got me when it comes to raw power, Saiyan." Slugs voice echoed and seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. "But brute force won't help you against my magic."
"Seems to have been working so far." Gohan quipped.
"That may be." Slug admitted grudgingly. "But with this spell, your luck has run out."
"You think I'm afraid of a little darkness?" Gohan replied. "If you wanted me to beat you with my eyes closed, you should have just asked."
"Quite the mouth on you, brat. Why don't we fix that."
Out of nowhere, Gohan felt the impact of two energy blasts against his back, sending him stumbling forward. "Gah!"
'So, that's his game.' Gohan thought. 'This darkness obscures all my senses, not just sight. I can't even feel beyond my clothes.'
He took off flying, trying to escape the spell's area. He went up, he went right, and he went left, but no matter how far he went, he couldn't escape the darkness.
"Little amateur. I told you I had much to teach you." Slug taunted. "Pity you'll never learn what I know. Then again, you monkeys never learn anything."
"That's what you think. I'm top of my class." Despite his defiance, Gohan was struck with three more attacks. Gohan closed his eyes, focusing on what little he could sense. While he was thinking, he was hit with several more blasts. They were increasing in power, which meant that he didn't have long before Slug started dishing some serious damage. Unfortunately, it seemed like there was no escape from this black abyss.
Break
18 wandered through the endless corridors of the space station contemplating all that Zangya had said to her. What if she had just talked with her friend before rushing off to space? If she had said something, anything, she knew that Zangya and Gohan would have moved heaven and earth to help her. Instead, her stubbornness could have cost them their lives. The current situation was horrible, but she shuddered when she thought of what might have happened if the boys hadn't been Saiyans. Her hands drifted to her stomach, and she felt a sickness that had nothing to do with the hormones. One wrong move, and she could have lost her own child. If they hadn't rescued her when they had, she would have.
"Are you lost?"
18 snapped out of her reflections and turned to see a silver man.
"Cooler, right?" She asked.
"Yes and no." The drone answered. "We are modeled after the main body, but we are simply an android subservient to the real Cooler. His will is instantaneously transmitted to each of us. But you did not answer my question."
"Right." She sighed. "I'm not lost. I'm just…" 18 looked around. She couldn't recognize where she was. Not that this was saying much. Almost everything on this station looked the same. Maybe she was lost.
"The star can be difficult to navigate." The meta Cooler spoke as if he knew her thoughts. "We can escort you to your quarters, if you wish."
"Thanks, but I don't really feel like being around anyone else."
"Understood." He paused for a moment. "If you desire, we can lead you to a private room."
18 raised an eyebrow. "Private room huh? Why? I thought we were prisoners."
"The members of the Jade empire are confined to their quarters until the resolution of the contract between Son Gohan and the main body. They are collateral, rather than prisoners." The android explained. "However, we desire that you not be placed under such restrictions. If you wish to see the room that has been set aside for you, please follow us."
Meta Cooler walked away and with a shrug, along with a fair bit of curiosity, 18 followed.
"So, why the special treatment for me?" she asked. "Does Cooler not consider me sufficient 'collateral' to Gohan?" Not that she could blame them for thinking that way.
"Quite the contrary." The robot smiled. "In truth, we consider you a valuable asset."
"Excuse me!?" 18 asked heatedly. She had stopped following the robot. "Just what makes you think that I'm your asset?"
Meta Cooler stopped to look over his shoulder.
"Apologies. We meant no offense. We simply mean that your presence has already been of great benefit to us." So saying, the android continued walking.
Compelled to find out what he was talking about, 18 caught up with him.
"Perhaps your Hera friend has already informed you, but this is no ordinary space station." The android continued his explanation due to her apparent curiosity. "It was designed to collect and integrate any useful technology it encounters."
"What does that have to do with me?" 18 asked, causing Cooler to give her an odd look.
"You, number 18, may very well possess the most unique technology we have yet to come across. True perpetual motion is a phenomenon that we have searched for our entire existence."
Understanding dawned on the cyborg. "So, what, you're going to use me to power your station? Not a chance."
"Not quite. We have already modified our power core based on the scans we made of you from your time in our care. No longer does this station require the energy of planets to maintain itself. The current conflict with the Elysia Crispata has allowed us to use our captured enemies, remnants of the tree of might, and fallen planets as fuel, but when this conflict is over? Your contributions have undoubtedly saved countless worlds."
18 was baffled by this and seemed to calm down. At least they wouldn't try to keep her as a prisoner. "Then you've gotten everything you need from me. Why not just dump me with the rest of the collateral."
"You are right. You have given us your most valuable assets. The main body is grateful and likes to repay his debts. Which is why he wants to help you with your internal malfunctions."
"Internal..." 18's eyes went wide. "Don't you dare touch my baby!"
The android let out a metallic chuckle. "Number 18, I would not harm your offspring. However, you will face a dilemma once you give birth. Are you aware that your energy limit has been rising?"
"Well… Yeah." She answered. Ever since she had fought Buu, her energy had been growing like crazy. She was even able to tap into higher levels when she wanted to.
"That is the internal malfunction we refer to." Cooler stated. "Your limiter has broken, and there is no way to control the output of your generator. Left unchecked, even your enhanced body will be destroyed. The only reason you have not already succumbed is that your unborn child is leeching your power. Quite remarkable, really."
18 looked down at her body, too shocked to say anything. Then a terrible thought crossed her mind. "Then the baby-"
"Our tests showed no adverse effects to the offspring." Meta Cooler assured her. "Her own energy will be extraordinarily high. Especially for a human. As I said, the danger is to you when it is no longer able to regulate your energy."
"So… I'm going to…" 18 couldn't finish the question. Why was she even brought back if she was going to die anyway? Why didn't the dragon fix this? She was going to be reunited with Krillin, have a child with him and what? It all was just going to end?
"I told you we would repay our debt, did we not?" Cooler drew her out of her despair. "That is, if you will accept our help."
18 didn't know what to say. All of it was just too much to take in.
"Here is your room." Meta Cooler stopped outside a door. "Please consider the offer."
With those parting words, the android left the cyborg alone in the hall.
Break
Elsewhere on the station, the members of the Jade empire had remained in their chambers. Turk and Broly had tried to create a search plan in order to find the boys, but every idea was shot down by Cheelai, who pointed out that each of their proposed strategies was used by Cooler, who had far more personnel than 2 warriors, with no success. At last, the duo was forced to realize that their only hope of finding the children was to rely on Gohan. Shamed by his powerlessness, Broly could think to do nothing but sit in a corner and sulk.
During his sulking, he felt a gloved hand pressed gently on his shoulder. He didn't react at first, but finally turned when he heard the voice of Cheelai.
"You ok Fluffy?" She asked gently.
Broly shrugged before turning back to face the wall.
"Sorry about your friends." She said sincerely, referring to the two children who had been taken by the Elysia Crispata. She could tell that they were pretty important to him. She guessed it was because they may be family or something similar.
"Thanks." Broly said shortly.
Cheelai wasn't used to these kinds of situations. Her job was mainly to deal with angry dignitaries or disgruntled customers. That's why she was assigned to guard this group, as her people skills made her ideal for keeping them in check. Unfortunately, she had no experience with melancholy. Normally that wouldn't matter, but something about seeing the massive man so down didn't sit right with her.
"Wanna get another game going?" She tried. "Might take your mind off things."
"…"
She nodded. "Ok. Well, if you change your mind…" she moved to leave, but then he spoke.
"This is all my fault." Broly dropped his head into his hands and Cheelai sat back down.
"How do you figure that?"
"If I hadn't beaten Cooler, then he never would have targeted the empire for revenge, or to draw me out, or whatever his plan was."
"Sure." Cheelai nodded.
"He never would have been away from his empire long enough for this pirate group to gain power. They never would have been in a position to abduct Goten and Trunks. If I hadn't been away from earth, I could have gone with them to keep them safe."
"I guess." The green girl shrugged.
"If I had never joined the jade emperor in the first place, and just died on that cursed planet like I should have, He would never have used me as a weapon and left his own domain. Trillions of lives would have been spared. Gohan wouldn't have to fight my battles for me, and the children wouldn't be in any danger."
"Wow." Cheelai paused for a moment. "You really have an overinflated sense of importance, don't you."
"Excuse me?" Broly said, almost offended by this comment.
"Well, I know men get like that sometimes, but you take it to a whole new level. I mean, did you blow up the south galaxy? Oh, let me guess, you invented drought and famine too, right? Was plague your doing? I bet you'd love to take credit for that one."
"Will you stop." Broly was getting irritated. "You think I dont wish I didn't have so many lives on my conscience?"
"Yeah, I get that. But you can't shoulder the blame for every awful thing that happens. I mean, come on, get over yourself."
"You have no idea what a monster I am, Cheelai!" He snapped.
"Well, some monsters are cute. Like that one with the cookies." She quipped undeterred by his raised voice.
This comment made him stare at her. "'Some monsters are cute?' That's all you have to say?"
"What do you want me to say?"
"You seriously don't get it." He shook his head. "You have no idea what I've done. I'm a plague to everyone around me."
"Plague. Called it." She smiled. "Look. I don't really know you, but you seem like a nice guy to me. Though, clearly you have some issues. If you really think that you're a terrible monster, and you can't do anything to fix the bad things you've done, then why don't you just try and move on?"
"Because I can't just move on from what I've done. It isn't that simple!"
"Sure, it is." She stood up and dusted her backside off, causing Broly to blush at the resulting vibration of certain parts. "You just have to have the guts to do it."
She walked away and started to chat with Pearl, while Broly stared after her. After some time, he turned his attention back to the wall.
"Some monsters are cute?"
Break.
Unfortunately for Gohan, Slug did not find him to be a cute monster at all. He reveled in the pain each of his strikes caused the boy. He was surprised to find that the Saiyan had lasted this long. By now, each of his attacks held considerable power, yet Gohan refused to yield. Of course, it was only a matter of time. While his energy was starting to deplete, he had more than enough to finish the brat. Of that, he was certain. He just had to wear him down first.
Gohan moved around wildly, trying to stay on the move to make for a more difficult target. Unfortunately, this strategy proved ineffective. Another volley of energy bombs detonated as they covered his body.
"Gah!" He gasped.
"What's wrong little Saiyan? Where's that sharp tongue?"
Gohan tried to ignore the voice so he could think. 'Come on!' He growled internally. 'I can't win like this! How am I supposed to fight if I can't sense anything but my own Ki!' Gohan paused. "That might work."
"I doubt it." Slug quipped. "The only way you'll escape this spell is if you DIE!"
Gohan stepped back and brought his knee up, catching Slug on the chin while his newly regrown arm was still outstretched from his latest attack. Slug fell to the floor, but quickly bounced up and away from Gohan. He brushed that counterattack off as a fluke, but to be safe, he decided his next attack should be ki based. He built up two massive energy bombs in his hand and sent them to Gohan. To his shock, not only did the Saiyan dodge both spheres, but he appeared right in front of Slug and forced a palm into his gut.
"Wha… How?" Slug groaned through the pain.
"Like I said, I'm top of my class." Gohan answered. Since his Ki was the only thing he could sense, he tried using it to send out waves constantly, feeling out any disturbances. Maybe he would call it, 'Ki-nar', or 'eki location.' "You've got magic, but I Aced the natural sciences."
Gohan grabbed onto Slugs neck and started to form a dark purple ball in his hand. Immediately, Slug felt a pain unlike anything he had ever experienced. He felt as if his very soul was disintegrating. The world of darkness fell apart, allowing Gohan and Slug to see that his midsection was almost completely gone.
"No… This is…" Slug wasted no more time. He fired a ki blast with both arms and destroyed himself from the chest down. The blast served to propel him away from Gohan and his deadly technique.
Knowing he didn't have much time, he started to regenerate as quickly as possible. Slug yelled his healing spell to speed up the rate of regeneration. His body was fully formed, but Gohan already had him in his sights, hands cupped at his side.
"Atomic…"
Slug didn't know what was coming, but if the boy knew how to use destruction, then none of his other spells would be useful against him. His only hope was gigantification. Maybe the boy would take long enough charging this attack for him to use his last technique. He focused his energy and began to expand it within himself.
"Kaameeehaaaaameeeeee…" Gohan paused his attack for a moment as he saw the Namekian beginning to grow to an enormous size. 'Alright, fine. Give me a bigger target.' "HAAAAA!"
Slug, now at his maximum size, thrust out his arms and fired a combined ki blast with his hands, mouth, and eyes, pouring out everything his great Namekian form could muster.
The beams met, and the resulting energy could be felt from galaxies away. The world was no longer able to support this battle. Massive chunks of the planet began to float up and disintegrate. Planet Slug was being destroyed, one mountain sized piece at a time.
Gohan's pure white beam started to push Slug's yellow and purple energy back.
'No! I can't lose like this!' He thought with genuine terror. 'I am lord Slug! I am the greatest of the Super Namekians! This brat can't defeat me!' Another thought entered his mind. The thought of his people being wiped out by this boy and Turles. 'No! Never again!'
Drawing on reserves he had never needed to before; he gave his energy one final push to overcome the super Saiyan demon. The sickly colored energy surged forward, even forcing Gohan back. In response, Gohan sent more power into his atomic blast, balancing out the power struggle. As each combatant poured in their energy, the energy expanded, until it finally exploded, engulfing the entire Slug galaxy in a burst of light.
Break
After the dragon cave, Goten and Nazz were able to locate 5 more dragon balls. One at the bottom of a giant canyon, one in the middle of a lake, one lodged in a cliffside, one frozen at the top of a mountain, and even one in a volcano. With each new location, Goten had gotten better at sensing them. It was like a mix between finding your way home plus a little shiny feeling, and sensing a little baby bird before it hatched, only it wasn't quite the same type of energy. It was weird, but even if he couldn't describe it perfectly, he knew he could sense them, and he was getting more confident.
"This is amazing kid." Nazz said with glee. She held a ball in her tail, and three in her arms, while Goten carried the other two. "You found six, and I don't even know how we could have found that last one if it weren't for your 'pure heart' power. Your heart must have been doused with disinfectant or something.
Goten blushed. "Thanks. I just hope Trunks is doing ok."
"Well, you said there are seven of these, right? So does it feel like he got the last one?"
"Um… I don't know." Goten tried to sense Trunks, whose energy was on the other side of the planet. "I don't think so. He's pretty far away from the next one."
"Hah! You smoked him good kid."
Goten didn't know what to say to that, so he stayed quiet. "I'm just glad we'll get to see our dads again."
"Me too. My dad used to tell me about the super Saiyan of legend. You think your dad could show me how to be one?"
Throughout their excursion, the two hybrids had shared stories of their Saiyan parents. Even with all of Goten's stories being second hand, Nazz was amazed by some of the stuff he did. After seeing Goten in action, she had no trouble believing that his father had achieved the legend and defeated Frieza.
"Yeah. Gohan said that's how he learned. Something about the pain of floss."
"Floss? What's that?"
"It's this really thin string that goes between your teeth and cuts your gums." Goten made a sour face. "I hate it, so I don't know if I'll ever become a super Saiyan. But I think it's down there."
"Floss?"
"No, silly." Goten chuckled. "The dragon ball. I think it must be under water, like the 3 star one."
The pair started their descent and landed on a grassy shore next to the green ocean. Goten set his two orbs on the grass and took his shoes off. "I don't know how deep it is, but I think I'll be ok on my own if you wanna stand guard up here."
"Whatever you say. You haven't given me reason to doubt you yet." She sat down on the grass with a sigh. "Though, this does seem like it's a lot deeper than that lake. How long do you want me to wait? Just so I know your still ok."
"Um…" Goten scratched his head. "Is 15 minutes too much?"
"You tell me."
"Ok. 15 minutes. I think I can hold my breath that long."
"On your mark." Nazz pointed a finger to the sky. "Get set… DIVE, DIVE, DIVE!"
She shot a ki blast in the air and Goten jumped into the ocean, propelling himself downward with his ki.
Nazz laid back with a smile and placed her hands behind her head. She really liked being around Goten. He was goofy, a bit like her dad, but he was also a really sweet kid. She was glad that he was going to be sticking with them from now on.
'I wonder if his brother is anything like him. If he's half as strong as the kid says, then nobody's gonna be messing with us hybrid anytime soon, that's for sure.'
As she counted aloud to make sure she didn't leave Goten down there for too long, she also thought about what Gohan would be like. Her thoughts were soon interrupted by a shadow crossing over her and the dragon balls. She looked up to see a familiar palm tree hairstyle.
"Oh, hey boss." She jumped up. "Check it out. The kid found all of 'em. He's getting the last one right now. He's really something, you know?"
Turles smirked. "Yes, you hybrids are always full of surprises."
"I'll take that as a complement." She rolled her eyes. At least he didn't say half breeds. "By the way, the little prince went off on his own. I've been keeping track of his energy though, so don't worry."
"I won't. As a matter of fact, I ran into the runt not too long ago and sent him on another little mission."
"Another mission?" Nazz tilted her head. "You're not gonna plant the tree already, are you?"
"No, not till after I get my wish." He explained. "You'll find out what it is when they get back."
"GAH!" The sound of someone gasping as they broke the waters surface drew their attention to Goten.
"10 minutes." Nazz stated. "That might be the fastest one-"
"RUN!" He yelled as he sprinted past them while holding the last dragon ball. Nazz looked on in confusion, but when dozens of giant sea serpents broke through the water, screeching angrily, she understood why the kid was panicking. She started to grab the balls, but before she even touched them, she saw a bright light and heard the zap of disintegration. She stood up straight and Turles retracted his hand with a smirk. Not a single serpent was anywhere in sight, though the scent of burnt eel hung in the air.
"Hey!" Goten yelled, causing Turles and Nazz to turn to him. "Why'd you do that!"
"The real question is, why didn't you?" Turles replied. "What kind of warrior runs from such weaklings?"
"Those guys didn't do anything wrong!" Goten insisted. "They thought I was attacking their eggs, so they chased me. I didn't fight back because then who's gonna take care of their babies?"
"What?" Turles laughed, then frowned when he realized the kid wasn't joking. "What kind of a Saiyan are you? We kill anything we need to. That's what being strong is."
"Says you." Goten growled.
Turles narrowed his eyes. Playing nice wasn't in his nature, and now that he had the dragon balls, he didn't really need to. "Yes. Says me. The strongest Saiyan. That means I'm the boss. You better start understanding that and cut your attitude, or we're going to have a problem, understand?"
Goten didn't answer, staring defiantly back at his supposed 'boss'. Nazz looked between the two palm tree heads and decided to break in, if only to save her new little buddy.
"Hey, lord Turles, cut him some slack. I mean, he did just find all the dragon balls. Now we can summon the dragon, right?"
Turles smiled, still maintaining the staring contest with the runt. "Not quite. See, we need a Namekian to make these work, don't we?"
Goten looked stunned. "H-how did you know that?"
"Oh, was it a secret?" Turles chuckled darkly. "And just why would you keep such a thing a secret? Were you trying to make your little wish without me?"
Goten stayed silent. That was exactly what he was planning. He'd never had a good feeling about Turles, and his heart told him that someone like him should never have access to the dragon balls. Unfortunately, now he had them all, and didn't look like he would be inclined to let himself and Trunks wish their dads back, let alone Krillin. The only possible bright side was that maybe elder Moori had gone back into hiding.
"Looks like we won't have to wait long for my wish. Our comrades are done playing their little hide and seek game." The head Saiyan smirked.
As he said this, the remainder of the Saiyans appeared all around them. Goten was shocked by their sudden arrival, but when he saw what all of them were holding, his blood began to boil. Each of them held five or six Namekians in each hand by their collars. Many of the older ones were bruised and bloodied, likely from trying to resist.
"PUT THEM DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Goten bellowed.
"If you insist." Turles gave a nod, and his followers dropped their cargo to the floor, with one Namekian landing face first in the dirt at Turles' feet.
"Mr. Moori!" Goten cried. He growled and turned to find out who had done this to the kindly elder. To his utter shock, the Saiyan standing behind Moori, was none other than his best friend, Trunks.
End chapter.
Well, there's another one. I tried to showcase some of the new aspects of Gohan's Super Saiyan Demon form, like using Kili to make hellfire, or his blasts taking on a different hue like black or purple. I also tried to make it so that he struggled with Slug, but still had the superior power. I don't know. Maybe I made it too easy, but in my mind, while this version of Slug is close to Gohan in terms of power, Demon Gohan is still much stronger. We're building up to the climax folks. I hope the action is sufficient, and the intrigue is intriguing. The next chapter is gonna be wild.