(Dead Zone)
ButHereIsTheEeper: You can't say I don't put in the effort at least.
Nalagory: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. I usually just upload it when I finish, and that's when I have the free time. You should check out Kakarot all the way to the end, its got really cool additional story elements to the series. That's just my own theory about the Saibamen, but I'm glad to approve of it. That is a pretty interesting idea you have with it, and I might make use of it later on.
SuperSaiyajin4Vegeta: Valid point, even if it isn't quite as effective as the others.
LilTye 504: You'll see as the story progresses. I've got plenty of ideas.
Rys-and-Clash: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. I know it's fairly uneventful so far, but you can only show so much in the first chapter. Trust me, Tien will make substantial contributions in due time.
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Days had passed, and the trip to Namek was continuing fairly uneventfully… for better and for worse.
"Oh my god, could this trip be any more boring?" Bulma let out a yawn as she threw away the book she was reading onto the pile of junk littering the floors around her bunk, and then began to down a can of beer 'Seriously, it's only day 7 and we still have like forever until we get even close to being done. You know in hindsight, I really wish I would've thought about installing some kind of hibernation chamber on this stupid piece of scrap.' and then she looked down to see Gohan and Tien sitting on the floor with their eyes closed 'Great, knowing those two they're probably doing that whole image training thing again. Well whoop dee fucking two for these deadbeats.'
It was then that Gohan's eyes snapped open and he fell forward, with Tien opening his eyes not long after, and the former gave a grin "You really are something else, you're so much stronger now and you've got a bunch of cool techniques."
"You've shown that you have some pretty good moves yourself, and there wer a few points where you almost had me." Tien gave a nod of approval as his eyes opened and he exited his meditative position "One image sparring session is enough for me to see that you really are a lot like your father. Combine that with Piccolo's training, and it's pretty safe to say that you're going to be a force to be reckoned with."
"Okay good you're done, now I have a thought." Bulma drew the attention of the two of them as she downed her can of beer "If you guys are so keen on mental imagery then about you two try this one on for size: You two getting off your butts and cleaning up the horrendous mess you made of the ship before I resort to opening the airlock."
"Uh huh." Tien paused as he looked at the junk littering the floor, and then he cast a glance back up at Bulma as his expression dulled "Sorry to disappoint, but the two of us had nothing to do with all of that. All of the horrendous mess as you put it was your own doing."
"Oh is that right? Well guess what, I'm the captain of this rig so that means you two do what I say. You think you guys can just sit on your asses playing mind games while I have to do all of the heavy lifting around here? Seriously, did the Crane School and Piccolo not teach you two to clean up after yourselves?"
"We're just sitting in this ship for a month, and you literally just claimed you were bored out of your mind. What exactly do you consider to be heavy lifting?"
"Try having to fix the toilet while it keeps screaming at you in German. Anyway, I don't want or need you to contradict me. If you won't respect me as the captain of the ship, then at least have the decency to respect me for the rare and delicate flower that any sane man would easily see me as." and then she stalked her way over to the seat in front of the control panel.
"Three things to point out about that. One, contradicting implies that what I'm telling you isn't true. Two, the phrase "double standard" comes to mind. Three, you're not so busy that you can't bother to fully dress yourself, keeping in mind that you're in front of a literal five year old. His mother already thinks that all of the people Goku hangs out are a bad influence. Do you want to prove her right?" Tien was met with silence, and he turned his gaze away from Bulma, only to pause when he saw Gohan looking downcast "You okay?"
"What? Oh yeah, I'm fine. I'll get to cleaning up." Gohan let out a sigh as he picked up a trash bag and got to work cleaning up the mess that Bulma left behind, only to pause as he noticed the look Tien was giving him "I'm fine, really."
"So it has nothing to do with Bulma mentioning Piccolo's name?"
"...Okay, maybe it is something." Gohan's face fell again slightly "I do miss him, even if no one else really does. I know he did some bad stuff, but he really isn't as bad as people make him out to be."
"I get it actually, better than you think I do. Truth be told, the Saiyans showing up wasn't the first time we, or at least I, had to consider Piccolo the lesser of two evils."
"What do you mean?" Gohan blinked a few times "You fought with him before?"
"Not really by choice, but the circumstances more or less called for it." Tien paused for a brief moment and turned towards the window of the ship "It was about three years after your father beat Piccolo in the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. We hadn't seen him since then, seeing how he had married your mother, settled down and had you, not that we actually knew of it at the time. The same can be said of Piccolo. I had gone my own way with Chiaotzu to travel the lands, honing my skills and making amends with the people I had hurt in any way I could. But things changed pretty quickly…"
And this is the story Tien told.
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(Flashback- age 758)
'And… NOW!' Piccolo let out a roar and unleashed a burst of ki, resulting in the rock formations in front of him being blown to bits, gritting his teeth and panting slightly as he wiped away a bit of sweat, his mind drifting towards one particular person 'Goku… the next time we meet, I'm going to finish you off with my own two hands… And now I have the perfect place to put my new castle once I conquer this world, and it'll have everything a castle requires, like walls… and a legion of subjects. I really don't know much about having an evil- Wait a second.' his musings were cut short as something caught his attention.
"So we finally found you, Piccolo…" that something came in the form of two unidentified warriors (those being Ginger and Nicky) charging at Piccolo from both in front of and behind him.
'No idea who these idiots are supposed to be, but they're packing more power than I thought they would… Wait, are they running on air? That doesn't make any sense. They're flying- why the hell would they need to-'
"Got him!" a third one suddenly burst up from the canyon beneath Piccolo and dealt him a swift uppercut to the jaw.
'What the-'
"Fuck him up! From the front to the back!" the figures all blitzed towards Piccolo and launched a series of attacks at him from three different directions, sending him flying across the desert.
"Oh fine, you had better just KILL ME!" Piccolo prepared to stop and rebound in mid air… only to pause as a fourth figure on a plateau behind him, and the three of them charging simultaneous energy blasts "Well shit."
"Be careful what you wish for Piccolo. Perhaps you'll remember that lesson when you finally reach hell." the fourth figure gave a smirk as he and the other three unleashed simultaneous Ki blasts, engulfing him in the following explosion, which levelled a plateau in the process, leaving the figures to cackle maniacally at their supposed triumph.
"Piccolo and Kami are one in both body and spirit now, because both of them are dead!" with the brief battle over, the fourth figure turned to the other three "Now that those pests have been taken care of, we have other business to attend to. Go find the Dragon Balls, NOW!"
"Yes sir!" the other three promptly vanished in simultaneous flashes.
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Meanwhile, with the other half of Big Green…
'No, this can't be…' the sensation of Piccolo's defeat was enough to leave Kami hunched over and clutching his chest in pain in horror 'To think that Piccolo could have been slain… No, he couldn't be, otherwise I wouldn't be here now… It isn't Goku, that much is certain, but this Ki signature… So it's him… After all these years, Garlic Jr has finally returned… Goku is gone on his own now, so I have to wonder… If I should fail, is there anyone else that can stop him before he wreaks havoc on this world?'
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Meanwhile, with the hero's sidekick…
'Okay, I've been preparing for this for a long time… Time for me to put my training to the final test.' Chiaotzu stood on a tree stump in the middle of a forest and floated into the air, casting a look at the figure standing behind him "I'm ready."
"You sure you wana do this?" Launch in her blonde form stood behind her, holding a gun in one hand and a stack of cards in the other "You know if this doesn't work, you're gonna die."
"I know what I'm doing, and I'm ready."
"If you say so." Launch pulled up one card as she readied her gun "What's 7 x 7?" and then she fired a single bullet.
"49!" Chiaotzu gave the answer right away, stopping the bullet with his telekinesis just before it struck the back of his head "Next."
"8 x 10." Launch fired another bullet.
"80!" Chiaotzu stopped the bullet with his other hand.
"6 x 5." a third bullet.
"30!" Chiaotzu flicked one bullet back at the oncoming one, causing both of them to ricochet into opposite trees.
"9 x 9!" a fourth bullet.
"81!" he ricocheted the other bullet, resulting in the same outcome.
"12 x 10!" a fifth and final bullet.
"Dodon Ray!" Chiaotzu fired a single Dodon Ray from his fingertip, incinerating the bullet in an instant "And the answer is 120."
"Yep, now are you gonna make me keep shooting at you or can I go find someone I actually wanna shoot at." Launch paused as a gust of wind blew through the clearing, some of her hair being blown into her face (or over her nose to be more specific), causing her to sneeze, and then in an instant she flashed back to her blue form, pausing as she looked at the gun in her hand "Oh no… Did blond me do something bad again?"
"Nothing I didn't ask her to do." Chiaotzu floated to the ground in front of Launch "It's okay, we're done now."
"Oh, that's a relief…" Launch paused and gave a soft smile "In that case, should we go back to the house? I can make us some lunch, and perhaps you could help me set the table?"
"Sure, maybe Tien will get something good while he's out farming."
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Meanwhile, with the triclops in question…
'I have to admit, I am kind of surprised, but in a good way…' Tien felt his mind racing as he rushed his way across a field of crops, sending them flying out of the ground and into various bins lined up on the edge of the fields 'Looks like Master Roshi was right after all, making any menial tasks into training really does have its benefits, and it's effective. I can feel it in my legs, back, shoulders and my arms. All things considered, it's turning out to be a pretty good workout after all.'
"Now that's what I call getting things done." an old man made his way over to Tien from the edge of the field "You really know your way around farming don't you?"
"More like I had a good teacher, and some good people to get me on the right path." Tien gave a small smile, but his gaze immediately hardened as a sensation washed over him "Hold on."
"Something wrong son?"
"You could say that… something doesn't feel right… I'll come back and finish this later, I have to go and take care of something." and so Tien burst off towards the woods without waiting for a response 'Chiaotzu, Launch, I just hope the two of you are okay.'
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Meanwhile, with the two in question…
"I found a lot of good ingredients to put to use while we've been here, and the villagers have been a big help too." Launch gave a small smile as she and Chiaotzu made their way through the rocky terrain towards the capsule house they shared, and then she pulled out something else in the form of a small orange ball with stars on it "One of them was even kind enough to let me have this."
"Wait, you found a Dragon Ball?" Chiaotzu seemed particularly taken aback by this "But when did you-"
"Well based on the last time I sneezed, I think it was yesterday. I just hope my other self didn't cause any trouble for them."
"Honestly I think it depends on the day for-" Chiaotzu cut himself short and his gaze hardened as he looked behind them "Hold on."
"Is something wrong?"
"Something's coming. Whoever's there stop hiding, come out and show yourself!"
There was a pause, and then a flash as a new figure appeared before the two of them, with green skin and a dark cloak (Ginger), a smirk spreading across his face "So you noticed my presence. I should be impressed I suppose."
"Who are you, what do you want?"
"There's only thing I'm after, and it's the thing that wench has." he gestured to the Dragon Ball in Launch's hand, causing her to recoil "Hand over the Dragon Ball."
"That's not going to happen." Chiaotzu floated into the air until he and Ginger were at the same eye level "Launch go back to the house, now."
"R-Right." Launch moved to run away from the scene as fast as she could, only to stop in her tracks when she noticed another figure (Sansho) looming over her in the tree above her "There's another one!"
'Wait, what?! How did I not notice that? They must have been masking their Ki signatures, which means these guys are no joke.'
"Don't think you'll be getting away that easily." the last one (Nicky) emerged from within the woods, stuffing a few pears into his mouth at the same time, a smirk quickly spreading across his face "Now if you're smart, unlike the rest of the idiots in this backwater village, you'll hand over that Dragon Ball."
"I'm smarter than you think, and I'm not afraid of you!" Chiaotzu braced himself as Ginger and Nicky came charging at him from opposite sides, prompting him to unleash a wave of telekinetic energy that caused both of them to freeze in place, and then he began charging Ki in both of his fingertips "Dodon-"
"Nope." Sansho suddenly blitzed above Chiaotzu and dealt him a smash attack to the head hard enough to send him crashing to the ground, disrupting his telekinesis and freeing both Ginger and Sansho, giving them the chance to unleash a series of quick Ki waves that sent him hurtling across the forest, leaving him lying in a scorched crater with visible burns.
"Chiaotzu!" a horrified Launch was quick to rush over Chiaotzu's side "Are you okay?"
"You have to go… Get away from here…" Chiaotzu tried to pick himself up, to no avail, much to the glee of the others.
"Don't count on that happening runt." Nicky was quick to blitz in front of Launch and sling her over his shoulder despite her attempts to run, and then he and the others disappeared from the scene in a flash.
"Chiaotzu!" only a few moments passed before Tien rushed onto the scene, picking up the fallen form of Chiaotzu in his arms "Chiaotzu are you alright? What happened here?"
"Tien… I'm sorry…" Chiaotzu cast a weak look up at him "They came through here… and they got Launch…"
"What do you mean, who took her?"
"I… I don't know… But she had a Dragon Ball… and they took it too…"
"So they're after the Dragon Balls, but who are they?" Tien was met with silence, and he looked down to see Chiaotzu unconscious, to which he gritted his teeth and lifted himself into the air 'I can't sense them, so they must be too far away… If they're after the Dragon Balls, there may be only one way for me to track them down… I'd better pay a visit to Bulma.'
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Meanwhile, with the villainous faction…
"Okay, so let me make sure that I understand this…" the leader of this group (Garlic Jr) cast an irritated glance over at Nicky and the others "I send you shitfits to find a Dragon Ball, and you end up bringing me back some random human woman."
"Well to be fair sir, we did bring back the Dragon Ball." Sansho pointed out.
"And the aforementioned human woman. Did you ever consider, I don't know, just taking the Dragon Ball from her?"
"Well sir, we did think about it on the way back, but by that point we were already more than halfway." Nicky tried to compose himself under Garlic Jr's gaze "Plus you said you wanted to have your own harem of sexy demon skanks, why not add a human women in there for the sake of variety?"
"...Huh. Fair enough." Garlic Jr gave a smirk, which only grew wider as he glanced down at the contents of the table in front of him "In the meantime, we've already managed to acquire five of the Dragon Balls, which means there are only two more for us to claim. Once we do that, I will summon the eternal dragon Shenron and ask him to grant me eternal life."
"We already know where we can find the last two balls sir, and it's only a matter of time before we're able to claim them."
"Excellent, that's just what I wanted to hear. Even Kami is bound by the shackles of time, but I will sever those chains and grant myself everlasting life! Once the power of the Dragon Balls is at last at my command, we can take revenge on our enemies, and we'll start by destroying this planet and every last living thing on it!" Garlic Jr let out a maniacal cackle, leaving his men to recoil in intimidation… only to be interrupted by the sound of a sneeze "What the-"
"Listen the fuck up you filthy little troll!" Launch picked herself up, now in her blonde form, stormed her way up to Garlic Jr and grabbed him by the front of his cloak, reaching into her pocket "If you think you're about to get through this without getting your neck snapped, you got another fucking thing coming for ya!"
"Hm… You have spirit. I like that." Garlic Jr gave a smirk as he subsequently unleashed a pulse of Ki that sent Launch flying off of him and hurtling to the ground "But if you're smarter than you've led us to believe so far, then you'll keep your mouth shut."
"You talk big you little shit…" Launch spat out some blood and gave a smirk of defiance "Go for it and do it while you can… you're screwed to hell and back once Tien Shinhan gets here… and he'll rip you a new one…"
"Tien you say?" Garlic Jr paused and frowned in thought 'That name sounds familiar…'
"Wait, I know who she's talking about." Ginger looked up at Garlic Jr "He's that triclops that fought Goku before he and Piccolo went at it at the last World Martial Arts Tournament."
"I see… So he's an acquaintance of Son Goku, the man who defeated Piccolo. In that case, we had better not take any chances.' Garlic Jr gave a smirk as he turned his gaze toward Launch "I will admit, you know how to talk a big game if nothing else. But my men here were strong enough to defeat Piccolo himself, the likes one more martial artist will do nothing to stand in my way. He'll suffer and die in agony just like all the rest." and then he turned his gaze toward his men "In the meantime however, I don't want to risk a confrontation with Son Goku or any of his companions unprepared, so hurry and get the last two Dragon Balls. Now!"
"Yes sir!" Ginger, Nicky and Sansho all bowed, and then the three of them disappeared in three simultaneous flashes.
'Excellent, it's only a matter of time before eternal life belongs to me alone! No one, not even the likes of Son Goku or Kami will be able to stop me Garlic Jr gave a triumphant smirk… only to pause when he looked down and saw that Launch had disappeared "Okay, where the heaven did she go?"
"Oh god it's LOOSE!" came a horrified shriek, followed by the sounds of an alarm blaring in the distance.
"Remember your training men, we'll make it thro-" another voice was drowned out by the sound of gunfire and stabbing, and lots of screaming.
"...Of course." Garlic Jr let out a sigh of frustration as he moved to take his leave of the throne room 'Why does nothing ever come easily? Next think you know we spent weeks tracking down the Dragon Balls for nothing, because apparently they make a bloody radar!'
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Meanwhile, with the wielders of the radar in question…
"I had to leave Chiaotzu behind with Korin, he said that the next batch of Senzu Beans will be ready soon." by this point, Tien had made his way to West City, the Capsule Corp building to be more specific, and was filling in both Bulma and Yamcha on the situation "It turns out it was realy the Dragon Ball that Launch had they were looking for."
"So then why the hell did they take Launch with them?" Yamcha raised an eyebrow.
"I don't know but it doesn't matter, I'm going to find them and get her out of there. But that's going to be a lot harder if they manage to summon Shenron."
"And it gets worse." Bulma pulled out the Dragon Radar and turned it on, showing the current location of the Dragon Balls "It looks like they already collected five of them, and two more are headed towards that location right now."
"Any idea where they're being kept?"
"It's in the South, I think that area is around the Red Sea."
"I see… In that case, I'm gonna need to borrow this." Tien snatched up the Dragon Radar and moved to take off out the doors of Capsule Corp.
"Tien hold on, you saw what they did to Chiaotzu! You don't want to underestimate guys like these!"
"I know, and I won't!" and on that note, Tien blasted off into the skies in the direction of the South, the Dragon Radar clutched tightly in his hand 'I'm coming Launch, just make sure you don't get into any big trouble before I get there…'
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Meanwhile, with the trouble in question…
"What do you mean she escaped again?!" Garlic Jr on the other hand was less than thrilled to hear about the current situation, and he let out a frustrated sigh 'Of course she is. No no, I have to calm down. How much damage could one human woman do?'
"Wait no no no, please don't! Not the face! NOT THE FACE" another shriek came from in the distance, followed by agonized screaming, and alarms blaring once again.
"...That would be how today is going." Garlic Jr's scowl only deepened 'Note to self, once I'm immortal, reevaluate how I recruit my men because they're are woefully incompetent. I really need some good news right now.'
"Sir you have to come quick!" the voice of Nicky rang in the distance "We finally found the last two Dragon Balls!"
'Speak of the devil.' Garlic Jr's scowl quickly morphed into a smirk 'Now to gain immortality, and then do something about the wench that's been trying to rip my castle asunder. Seriously, how many of my men does it take to pin down one human woman?'
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Meanwhile, with the men in question…
"Bravo come in, do you have visual on the prisoner?!" in a dark corridor with a single flickering light, a lone radio lay on the ground abandoned with a single voice coming through "I repeat, do you- Oh my lord… IT'S IN THE VENTS!"
What followed next, could only be described as the sound of inhuman snarling and sounds of untold carnage coming through the radio.
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Meanwhile, with the hero of this story…
'There it is!' Tien continued making his way across the skies, following the directions given by the Dragon Radar, eventually taking notice of a crimson light in the distance, only for it to be quickly blocked out by dark cloiuds 'If the radar is any indication then that's where I have to go, and based on the dark clouds it looks like they already summoned Shenron. I'd better hurry and pick up the pace. Hang on Launch, I'm on my way…'
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Meanwhile, with the villain in question…
"Excellent, the gathering is finally complete." Garlic Jr's smirk grew wider as he and the others stood out in the courtyard of his castle with the Dragon Balls gathered in front of him "Now that the gathering is complete, there's only one thing left I need to do.
I can summon the Eternal Dragon and have my wish granted. Rise, Eternal Dragon!"
Sure enough, the Dragon Balls glowed and the skies were covered by dark clouds, and from the balls themselves emerged Shenron in all of his glory "You who have summoned the eternal dragon, speak your wish and it shall be granted. What is it that you desire?"
"Eternal Dragon, I beseech you and your limitless mystical power! I ask that you grant to me everlasting life, the gift of immortality, so that I may rid myself of the vile inhabitants of the human race, and secure myself as the ruler of this planet!"
"Very well. As you wish." Shenron's eyes glowed red, with Garlic Jr being bathed in a pillar of light "Your wish has been granted, I bid you farewell." it was then that he disappeared, and the Dragon Balls scattered across the world, dormant for another year.
"Yes… YES! I can feel it!" Garlic Jr let out a maniacal cackle as the pillar of light subsided, with a thick white aura taking its place "With this eternal body at my command, I shall enslave the world and rule it with great prejudice and terror! From this day forward, Garlic Jr, will rule over all! I command all evil spirits to come forward and take on their physical forms once again! You are free to walk, a new dark age has finally begun! Vengeance will be mine, all who live shall fear my wrath! Let this world be drenched in the blood of the righteous! Now that I am immortal, I will rule the universe for all of eternity! All creatures will obey me or perish! With every power I possess, my new terror will be everlasting! I have nothing to fear anymore, no one can defeat me now. I will avenge my father's death by destroying all of our enemies, then I will rule the universe with the fury of the blood that runs in my veins! Bow before your master men, the master of all of existence!" he moved to make his way back into the castle, only to pause as something caught his attention "And it seems that my eternal rule is about to have its first challenger."
Sure enough, it was at that moment that Tien dropped down onto the scene, his gaze hard and kept squarely on Garlic Jr "Looks like I found the right people."
"You seem quite sure of yourself. I take it you're this Tien Shinhan that I've been hearing so much about?"
"I am, and you and your companions are the ones that hurt Chiaotzu, kidnapped Launch and slaughtered a village of innocent people."
"They were in the way, and now you're about to join them." Ginger gave a smirk as he and the others moved to advance on Tien, prompting him to drop into a stance… only for this to quickly be disrupted by a golden light bursting down onto the scene.
"And then there's this asshole, of course he would have to show himself here. But at the same time, it means that Piccolo isn't dead.' Garlic Jr gave a scowl as a figure appeared from within the light "You always did like to ruin an evil thing, didn't you Kami?"
Sure enough, from within the light emerged none other than Kami himself, his gaze hardened and locked onto Garlic Jr "I'm merely fulfilling my duty as guardian of the Earth, protecting its people from the likes of you Garlic Jr. It took 300 years for you to show yourself again. Though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised the lengths you're willing to go in order to get exactly what you want."
"Quite the claim. I have to admit I'm surprised you're still alive after all this time, especially given how the last time we talked was… Oh yes, when you went and banished my father into another dimension!"
"And it seems like the old saying is true, like father like son." Kami gave a scowl as he paused to reflect on the history shared between them "I competed with your father for the throne of Kami, and by the end I was the one chosen to ascend to greatness. The one who sat on the throne before me saw your father's evil ambition, but your father wasn't satisfied with the decision and decided to take the throne by force. He summoned an army of demons and evil spirits in an attempt to take the throne, and so my predecessor had no choice but to seal Garlic and his dark power for eternity, though the damage had been done. Your father vowed that within 300 years he would have his revenge. Even if he told me then I never would've believed that he was so tenacious as to seek revenge through his only son."
"Then you should've passed my father the throne, it would've saved me the trouble of having to kill you myself."
"I didn't come here to listen to your life story." Tien let out a snarl "Where is Launch, what did you do with her?"
"Oh please, that sadistic wench? With all the trouble she's given us, you can have her back for all I care. She and the rest of the worthless inhabitants of this planet will be dead before too long anyway."
"Not if I have anything to say about it." Tien dashed past the group and quickly rushed inside the castle.
"The rest of you go after him. I have some personal business to attend to here."
"Yes sir!" and so Nicky, Ginger and Sansho all chased after Tien into the castle, leaving Garlic Jr and Kami to their own confrontation.
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Meanwhile, inside the castle…
"Launch!" it didn't take long for Tien to make his way into the heart of the castle, his mind racing as he tried to find Launch, to no avail 'I can't sense where her Ki is… which means there's only one way to find her. I guess I'll have to do it the old fashioned way.'
"Not so fast triclops." it was then that Nicky and the rest of the trio suddenly appeared on the scene and surrounded Tien on three different sides "If you wanna get to the wench, then you'll have to get through the three of us first!"
"Yeah. I kind of figured it was going to come to that." Tien quickly tossed aside the white t-shirt he was wearing and dropped into a combat stance.
"But first, I think some formal introductions are in order. My name is Nicky, and the other two are Ginger and Sansho, all proud heralds to our master Garlic Jr. Just making sure you know the names of the ones that kill you." and then the three of them blitzed out of view.
'They're fast!' Tien leapt into the air and rebounded off the railing of one of the upper levels, only for Ginger to blitz behind him and grab him by the legs, giving all three of them the chance to try and drive him into the ground below, until…
"Solar Flare!" Tien managed to move his hands just enough to unleash a Solar Flare, blinding the trio and giving him the chance to free himself and gain some distance once they all returned to the ground "If that's how the three of you want to play this then fine, go ahead and come at me with everything you've got."
"Fine, but remember that you asked for it. Ginger Bread! Tutty Frutti! Pepperoni!" the three of them all bulked up in an instant, increasing their size and leaving them all with giant bulging muscles.
'All of their Ki signatures just shot way up… This isn't good, I'd better-' Tien's thoughts were quickly cut short as the trio charged at him, forcing him to go on the defensive, blocking and dodging as many of their strikes as he could, though this came to a head when he caught a fist from Ginger and a kick from Nicky, giving Sanso the chance to elbow him in the spine with enough force to send him hurtling into a pillar across the room, though he spat out some blood and quickly pulled himself back onto his feet 'So the appearance isn't just for show, they're a lot stronger than they were before and the bigger muscles do nothing to slow them down. Go ahead and come at me!" and so he braced himself as the trio charged at him again.
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Meanwhile, outside the castle…
"So how does it feel?" Garlic Jr shot a mocking smirk in Kami's direction "Let me guess Kami, you're a bit sore about the fact that I tried to have you killed?"
"Not exactly the word I'd use." Kami shot his own glare in Garlic Jr's direction "To be entirely truthful, I'm more confused as to why you would try and target Piccolo instead of me. It's well known that he's the stronger of the two of us. Not that it matters anyway, seeing how I intend to put you down for good, not unlike I did to your father you miserable little-"
"You're more than welcome to try, whereas I will enjoy watching you fail. Because you see, just before you and the triclops arrived here, I used the Dragon Balls to grant myself eternal life, so now even time itself is nothing before me!" he let out a maniacal cackle.
"Wait, so you tried to have me killed and then use the Dragon Balls?" that one question proved enough to shut him up.
"Of course I did, you're my greatest opposition so why wouldn't I-" Garlic Jr cut himself short as the realization dawned on him 'Oh. OH. Oh shit, I really did dodge a bullet on that one. In that case, I suppose I should be grateful for my minions being generally incompetent.'
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Meanwhile, inside the castle…
'They're faster than I expected, but it's nothing my eyes can't follow!' Tien didn't waste any time in dodging, blocking and weaving around as many attacks as he could, following each one of them with his three eyes.
"DIE!" Sansho was the one to try and go in for a finishing blow, until…
"Volleyball FIST!" Tien ended their attempted assault with a Volleyball Fist, using one blow each to send Nicky and Sansho flying into pillars on opposite sides of the room, and then the final blow sending Ginger crashing to the ground "I don't want to kill the three of you, but I will if I have to. Now tell me where Launch is."
"You'll see her soon enough in HELL!" Nicky and Sansho rebounded and fired two large Ki blasts at Tien, until…
"Spirit Ball!" a golden-colored Ki sphere shot out of nowehre and dissipated one of the blasts, with a second on doing the same to the other blast not long after.
"I have to admit, I wasn't expecting that." Tien glanced over towards the source of the Ki balls and gave a knowing smirk "But I'm definitely not going to complain about it either. Good to have you here Yamcha."
Sure enough, from within the shadows emerged Yamcha, a familiar sword strapped to his back and a confident smirk plastered across his face "Sorry to keep you waiting man, had to snag one of Bulma's capsule planes to bring myself here. Still working on the flying thing."
"Fair enough. You think she's gonna be mad at you?"
"She's already pissed at me and I figured you'd want the backup, I guess some things are worth it."
"I definitely won't object." Tien gave a grateful nod, but then his gaze hardened as he turned back to the trio "It's still two on one though. I guess I'm gonna have to break out the Multi Form technique after all."
"Don't bother wasting your time with that." it was then that none other than Piccolo appeared on the scene, leaving both Tien and Yamcha taken aback.
"Piccolo?!"
"Goku figured out how that works in a matter of minutes, as stupid as these three are it won't take long for them to do the same."
'...Dammit, he has a point.' Tien's gaze hardened further as he and Yamcha stood by side and kept their gazes locked onto Piccolo "I don't suppose you plan on explaining what the hell it is you're doing here?"
"Calm down triclops, I didn't come here to help you fools out of the goodness of my heart or anything of that sort." Piccolo levelled a glare at Nicky and the rest of his trio "I have a score of my own to settle with the likes of them."
"Uh huh." Tien shared an uncertain look with Yamcha 'As much as I hate to admit it, better to have him with us than against us, at least for the time being.'
"Hold on, what the fuck?!" Ginger was the first of the trio to speak up "You mean Piccolo isn't dead?"
"Of course he's alive, Kami's alive. I saw him on the way here." Yamcha looked up at him "I mean you guys were going after the Dragon Balls right?"
"...Oh shit."
"Yep, guess it's a pretty good thing you guys suck at your jobs." Yamcha dropped into a stance as the trio prepared to charge, only to falter when the sound of a gunshot ring throughout the castle "What the hell?"
"Dammit!" as it turns out, the source of that came from Launch, perched on one of the upper floors of the castle with a rifle in hand "I forgot about these diptshits being pullet proof."
"Launch?!" it was then that Tien and the others took notice of her "What are you doing?"
"What do ya think? I was waiting for you to show up and kill these assclowns so I figured I'd make it a little easier for ya, found where these guys keep their weapons and gunned down most of the foot mooks or whatever ya call them. Only downside is the guns they got don't work on the three big ones."
"Just hold on, I'm coming up to get you!" Tien was about to charge toward the upper levels, only to falter when he found Nicky and Ginger blocking his way "Okay, new plan… Yamcha, I hate to ask, but-"
"Don't worry man, I've got your back!" Yamcha was quick to make a beeline for the staircase, albeit faltering slightly as he passed by Piccolo, and rushed to meet up with Launch as fast as he could, only to falter on the upper level when he found Sansho in front of him 'Crapbaskets. You know I kind of like the ring of that actually.'
"Now you're mine pretty boy!" Sansho moved to charge at Yamcha, only for a burst of Ki to erupt from beneath the floor, causing him to fall through.
"...Okay, so that works too." Yamcha glanced over to see Launch perched on a pillar, and then he noticed Tien being sent flying by Ginger and Nicky "Aw crapbaskets… Launch stay where you are, Tien I'm coming man!" and so he took off towards where Tien was fighting 'Tien wasn't wrong, I guess it's better to have Piccolo with us than against us.'
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Meanwhile, with the demon king in question…
"Truth be told I would've been fine with that idiot." Piccolo scowled at Sansho as he pulled himself out of the rubble "But honestly, this is better. Now you're going to pay for what you and your friends did to me.
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Meanwhile, outside the castle…
"I've waited so long for this moment!" once the battle had begun, Garlic Jr easily dodged the barrage of eye beams Kami was firing at him and quickly headbutted him hard enough to send him crashing into a pillar, and then he started repeatedly punching him in the chest with a smirk spreading across his face "So tell me Kami… Where! Is! Your! God! NOW?!" the last punch was hard enough to send him flying through the pillar.
"Your god… here…" Kami managed to hold onto the ledge of the castle courtyard to avoid falling into the abyss below, only to be lifted up by the front of his robe by Garlic Jr.
"So here's an idea for you Kami, how about you go ahead and pray for your life? And then like every pathetic person that ever prayed to you, I'll just ignore it."
"I… I never answered you…" Kami paused as his body began glowing with golden colored energy.
"What the hell are you-"
"He's right HERE!" Kami subsequently unleashed a quick Explosive Wave powerful enough to send Garlic Jr crashing into a wall and landing on his face.
"Of course you know… This means war…" the words came out muffled, but the intent to kill was clear.
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Meanwhile, with the evil vs evil fight…
"Ow, ow, ow, SHIT!" it didn't take long for Sansho to get sent flying through a wall and then crashing back to the ground in a pile of rubble "You little fucker…"
"Like you're one to talk." Piccolo stepped through the broken wall after him and cracked his neck "You're not as tough as you like to believe you are without your two backup dancers, are you ugly?"
"Hey, you don't hear me going out and spewing insults at you like that!"
"You know that's fair, how about I grab a couple of friends and try to murder you when your guard is down instead?"
"Well personally I think that sounds a little bit uncalled for." Sansho charged at Piccolo at full speed, only for his fist to be caught and for him to be met with a series of swift punches and kicks, ending with blow to the jaw that sent him hurtling through several pillars and into the far wall, leaving him embedded in it.
"Yeah you're right, cause there's one big difference between us." Piccolo fired a quick Explosive Demon Wave, killing Sansho on the spot "Unlike you, I don't need help." and then he turned on his heal and walked away from the scene.
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Meanwhile, with the other battle with the henchmen…
"You like to talk a big game, but let's see if you can back it up when you're pulling these babies out of you! Katana Kogki!" Nicky and Ginger began pulsating, their eyes glowing as they each suddenly pulled a pair of twin swords out of their bodies and charged at Tien.
'Dammit, of course they have to bring weapons into this.' Tien quickly went on the evasive to avoid Ginger's blades, only to notice Nicky coming at him from behind.
"I got your back man!" Yamcha suddenly swooped in and managed to block Nicky's swords with his own, giving Tien the chance to dodge Ginger's next strike (which cut clear through the wall of the castle behind them) and retreat.
"Thanks for the save Yamcha, I owe you one." Tien breathed a small sigh as he retreated a short distance and contitnued dodging Ginger's attacks "But I don't remember you really being the type to use a sword."
"Oh this? It's a little something from my old bandit days before I met Goku and Bulma, I picked it up from my old hideout a little while back and I guess it's paying off now. Speaking of which, hold up one second. Wolf Fang FIST!" Yamcha weaved his way around Nicky's attacks and dealt him a swift Wolf Fang Fist, ending his assault with a double palm strike that sent him hurtling off the ledge they were fighting on and crashing into another part of the castle below them "I got him, get the other one!"
"Right!" seeing that Nicky was down for the moment, Tien went on the offensive and quickly dealt Ginger a rapid series of strikes before leaping over his head to gain some distance.
"Now you're gonna die you little shit!" Ginger tightened his grip on his swords and moved in for the kill, until…
"Hammerhead!" Tien dove towards Ginger and landed a flying headbutt to his torso, sending him hurtling off the platform towards where Nicky had fallen, and then he put his hands together for one final attack.
"You ain't got shit! Shogayaki Blaster!" Ginger managed to compose himself in mid air just enough to fire off a pink Ki wave from one of his palms.
"Tri-BEAM!" Tien fired a quick Tri Beam that easily ripped through Ginger's attack and sent him hurtling towards the ground below.
'Freaking hell… Last time I take on a guy who can use his hands like that.' Nicky let out a groan as he pulled himself out of the rubble… only to immediately be met with Ginger crashing to the ground in front of him, leaving both of them to be vaporized by the oncoming Tri-Beam within a matter of seconds.
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Meanwhile, with the god vs demon battle…
"Well so much for having any fight left in you. I guess it wasn't enough for you to actually pull yourself out of this alive." Garlic Jr let out a chuckle as he made his way over to where Kami lay slumped against a pillar in a battered heap "So what's wrong now? Wait let me guess, you've just fallen and can't get up. Do you need me to push that big red button for you?"
"I can… push it… myself…" Kami picked himself up, or tried to at least, and ended up slumping over Garlic Jr's tiny form.
"Okay seriously Kami, now you're making this weird."
"I am guardian of this planet… I will protect it and its people… it's my duty… and I know of the suffering you will cause… if you take over this world… And I won't let that happen… No matter what it takes…" Kami gritted his teeth as he locked his arms around Garlic Jr's back, his body beginning to glow with a powerful surge of blue Ki.
"Okay first off, you'd actually willingly give up your life to save this planet?"
"Without hesitation. It will serve as the last thing I do as the guardian of this world."
"Second of all, you really want to try and stress test this? Well go ahead and try it, and while my men are scraping little green chunks off the wall, I'll be parting in my throne room with a harem of sexy demon skanks. Seriously, what part of immortality isn't getting through your wrinkly old head?"
"We'll see how that immortality works out for you once I've blown both of us to bits!"
"Actually, I have to go with the little imp on this one." this was when Piccolo made his way back onto the scene "As much as I hate to say it, I'm gonna have to ask that you don't blow yourself up right now. As for the imp himself, he may not be able to die but he's going to wish he was dead when I get through with him."
"Big words coming from one who was beaten so easily before." Garlic Jr gave a smirk as he brushed Kami off of him and turned to face Piccolo "That being said, it seems like you were able to elude my men so easily."
"Yeah sure, let's go with that."
"...You killed all of them didn't you?"
"You don't sound surprised by that." this was when Tien and Yamcha dropped down onto the scene next to Piccolo.
"Honestly I'm not. It's just a waste that they had to lose to a trio of fighters like you, willing to sacrifice themselves to try and prevent the inevitable. It really is a waste. Well then, it looks to me like if you want someone killed right… then you have to kill them yourself!" Garlic Jr let out a roar as his body began pulsating, and then in an instant he transformed into a massive hulking form that towered over the others.
"...Huh. You know for a second I thought he was gonna yell out spaghetti or-" Yamcha didn't get the chance to finish, mainly due to what happened next.
"Darkness Illusion!" Garlic Jr blitzed towards the group and landed a blow with each arm that sent them skidding back a short distance, then blitzed behind them to elbow each of them in the back, throwing Yamcha to the ground in the process and sending Tien and Piccolo hurtling back a short distance "Death Impact!" and then he finished up by firing a sizable Ki blast that forced the three of them to dodge it.
"I gotcha!" Yamcha managed to recover in time to pull Kami out of the way before the Ki blast struck, laying him down on the ground a short distance away from the battle "Alright, now stay here and don't move. I'm gonna go get Launch the hell out of here." and so he promptly took off, just as the castle began crumbling around them, finding Launch sprawled out on the ground and manaigng to covr her just before a large piece of debris fell on top of them, and then several others, leaving them buried amongst the debris.
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Meanwhile, with the main battle…
"Trust me, this transformation isn't just for show." Garlic Jr gave a smirk as he blocked every one of Piccolo's attacks with ease "And unlike yours, bulking up does more than just make me a bigger target." and then he prepared to advance on Piccolo and let his own fist fly, when…
"Solar FLARE!" a blinding white light left Garlic Jr stunned before he could continue with his assault, giving Tien the chance to swoop in and launch his own swift flurry of punches and kicks at Garlic Jr… only to find that he wasn't even fazed 'You can't be serious, he's taking all of this like it's nothing!'
"Let me guess, you find this surprising? Even without immortality backing me up, those feeble attacks of yours would do nothing to me, unlike with my own attacks, which are about to send you straight to HELL!" Garlic Jr promptly fired a Full Power Energy Ball at Piccolo and Tien, engulfing them in the explosion that followed, which also caused the castle to start falling apart all over the place.
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Moments passed, and the collapsing and falling debris seemed to subside, if only for a moment.
'He's here somewhere, I know he is.' Tien looked around through the darkness in order to try and locate Garlic Jr, with little success 'He's suppressing his Ki, so that means-'
"COMING THROUGH!" a hulking blue figure burst through the darkness and grabbed Tien by the head.
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Meanwhile, with the other would be king…
'Dammit, that bastard messed up my wrist.' Piccolo got down on one knee within the darkness, nursing the pain in one of his wrists 'I mean it's not like it hurts a lot, but it definitely feels really uncomfortable. Maybe I should conjure up a wrist brace or-'
"PAIN TRAIN IS COMING!" Garlic Jr burst out from within the darkness and grabbed Piccolo by the face as well "NEXT STOP: ROCK BOTTOM!" and then he burst through one of the walls of the castle and slammed both Tien and Piccolo into the ground "Get it?"
"Yeah, we got it." Tien spat out some blood as he and Piccolo retreated back to gain some distance, and then he cast a glance over at the latter "I don't suppose there's a chance that you're wearing weight clothing like last time?"
"Does this answer your question?" Piccolo promptly ripped off both his weighted cape and turban and threw both of them to the side "I don't come without being prepared. Now stay out of my way, against power like his you'll only get in the way."
"You're not the only one who's been training hard since the last time we met, and I'm prepared to go in with everything I've got." Tien dropped into a stance and locked his gaze onto Garlic Jr, with Piccolo doing the same "I have to admit, I never thought I would see the day where I'm on the same side as you."
"Don't get too comfortable, you already know what I plan to do once he's out of the way."
"I assume that goes both ways. Now let's do this."
"On that we can agree."
"By all means, go ahead and give me your best shot." Garlic Jr blitzed out of the way in order to avoid Piccolo's and tried to land one himself, only for him to blitz out of the way as well, with this process repeating itself, until…
"Solar Flare! Volleyball FIST!" Tien blitzed in front of Garlic Jr and unleashed a quick Solar Flare, leaving him stunned long enough for Tien to land two blows that sent him hurtling into the air, followed by a final blow to the back that sent him hurtling to the ground.
"You filthy little-" Garlic Jr managed to recover before he hit the ground, only to find himself on the defensive from a rapid barrage of punches and kicks from Piccolo, pushing him further and further back until he ran out of patience "I've had it with you and your-"
"Tri-BEAM!" in an instant, Tien appeared directly in front of Garlic Jr and blasted him with a fully powered Tri-Beam, engulfing Garlic Jr in the explosion that followed, also obliterating one of the nearby towers in the process. With the battle appearing to be over, Tien fell to one knee, with both him and Piccolo panting heavily "It's… It's over…"
"Holy crap, that was intense!" it was at this moment that Yamcha and Kami appeared on the scene, the former breathing a heavy sigh of relief "Nice work Tien. And Piccolo, you uh… Good to have you on board, I guess."
"Don't even think about it,." Piccolo's gaze hardened as he turned to face Tien and Yamcha "In case you forgot, I still have a score to settle with the likes of your little group. Trust me when I say that after I finish things with Goku, the two of you will be next."
"You're more than welcome to try." Tien didn't flinch as he dropped into a stance, with Yamcha slowly doing the same "But I think you'll find we won't go down as easily as you'd like."
"In that case, why don't I show you just how inferior you really are." Piccolo cracked both of his knuckles and dropped into a stance "The loser who couldn't beat Kami when he was disguised as a human, and the deadweight who thought he could stand against the original King Piccolo, by himself no less."
"And you have even more of a mouth on you than he did. We may have fought on the same side today, but that doesn't mean for a second I've started trusting you." Tien's gaze hardened further as his stance tightened "You're still King Piccolo in my eyes, and if we have to fight you here and now then we will."
"I'm supposed to believe you actually stand any kind of chance against me?"
"Maybe, maybe not. But I wouldn't be able to call myself a warrior if I didn't have the courage to at least try."
"Is that right? You've got the spirit if nothing else. Now let's see if you actually have the skill to back up that talk." Piccolo was about to charge at Tien and Yamcha, when…
"ENOUGH!" an explosion of Ki erupted throughout the battlefield, blowing the others clean off their feet as Garlic Jr burst forth from beneath the rubble, the burns across his body slowly healing themselves, and his expression contorting with pure rage "I WILL NEVER DIE! AND I AM ONE HUNDRED AND TEN PERCENT DONE WITH ALL OF YOU! YOUR PUTRID INSOLENCE JUST EARNED YOU A ONE WAY TRIP TO OBLIVION! DEAD ZONE!" he got into a stance as his body was engulfed in Ki, causing a spiralling vortex to open up within the skies above them, causing what was left of the castle to get sucked into the void.
'Shit, shit, SHIT! Multi Form!" thinking quick, Tien divided himself in two, using his duplicate to keep himself, Piccolo and Yamcha latched onto a pillar implanted in the ground.
"Oh man, this isn't good…" Yamcha looked up at the others "So uh, he's not dead!"
"Yeah, how about that?"
"Yeah, how about that?!" Garlic Jr let out a maniacal cackle "Do you recognize this Kami? This is the Dead Zone, the same dimension that you banished my dear father to!"
"Is that right?" Kami gritted his teeth as he dug his nails into the piece of rubble he was latched onto "Then is that how your father receives conjugal visits?!"
"EAT A DICK YOU WRINKLED GREEN DUSTBIN!" this may be out of character for Kami, but I don't care because it's hilarious.
"...You know what? If I'm gonna go down, I'm at least getting one freaking win! Hang tight you guys, I've got this! SPIRIT BALL!" Yamcha released his grip on Tien and let himself hurtle forward, summoning a Spirit Ball as big as he could make it and hurtling at Garlic Jr… only for it to bounce right off him, leaving him to grab onto one of Kami's arms "Okay… Do I at least get points for trying?"
"For however much it's worth when you're stuck in an endless void for eternity!" Garlic Jr let out another cackle "Now do you see?! Everyone is getting sucked today! That means demons, humans and even gods alike!"
"We'll see about that!" Kami mustered what strength he could as he reached into his robe with one hand and extended that arm all the way towards Tien, forcing it into one hand "Hurry and use this!"
"What are you-" Tien cut himself short when he noticed what he now held in his hand: a familiar tiny bottle "You mean… I'm on it!" his gaze quickly hardened as he released his grip and let himself get sucked towards Garlic Jr, eventually managing to stop himself on his chest.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Garlic Jr released one hand, grabbed Tien by the throat and threw him to the ground, preparing to finish him, until…
"Ki Blast CANNON!" Tien fired a quick Ki Blast Cannon right through Garlic's chest at point blank range, leaving a large gaping hole in the middle of it.
"You're wasting your efforts! What part of immortality don't you understand?!" Garlic Jr was about to finish Tien for real, only to falter when he saw a green glow surround his body, which was quickly followed by the small bottle being shoved into the hole "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"This! EVIL CONTAINMNT WAVE!" Tien waved his hands and summoned a spiralling green vortex, causing Garlic Jr to scream in agony as he was enveloped in it… though the wave was quickly diminished by Tien being forced to grab on to a pillar to avoid being sucked into the Dead Zone.
"I WILL NOT BE DEFEATED BY THE LIKES OF YOU!" Garlic Jr took the opportunity to try and force his way out of the wave… only to be met with a sudden gunshot ripping through the battlefield and striking Garlic Jr in one of his eyes, causing him to howl in pain.
'What the hell?!' Tien was just as taken aback at the sight of Garlic Jr's eye being shot out, despite it now starting to heal, and his eyes widened as he found the source "Launch…"
Sure enough, Launch stood amidst the rubble with a rifle in hand, the fact that she was being sucked towards the Dead Zone doing nothing to stop her from taking more shots at him "You wanna suck me into your dark freaky hole, you ain't taking me without a fight! Tien hurry the hell up, if you're gonna blow him up or shit then FUCKING DO IT ALREADY!"
"Nothing you can do can stop me!" Garlic Jr managed to pull himself together enough to try and fire a Ki blast at launch, until…
"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!" Tien gritted his teeth and he mustered all the strength he could to take back control of the wave, fully enveloping Garlic Jr in it once again, though he quickly felt it slipping 'This isn't good… I can't hold it together with one arm… At this rate, I have to let go and risk being sucked in… But if it means saving everyone… then it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make…' he took a breath and released his hold on the pillar, preparing to use his other arm to strengthen the wave… only to be met with something grabbing him by the wrist and forcing it back onto the pillar and his eyes widen as he found the source "Piccolo…?"
Sure enough, Piccolo was latched onto the pillar with the same hand holding Tien's down "Don't even think about giving up that easily! You said you can only call yourself a warrior if you tried to fight right? Then stop sitting on your ass and DO IT! Besides, you're not the only one here who knows how to use the Evil Containment Wave, remember?"
"...Right. Let's do it. Evil… Containment… WAVE!" Tien let out a roar and pushed forward with all the power he mustered, with Piccolo adding his own, the two of them strengthening the wave enough to send Garlic Jr spiralling through it towards the opening of the bottle.
"YOU HAVEN'T DEFEATED ME! YOU'LL NEVER DEFEAT ME! SO LONG AS I HAVE ETERNAL LIFE COURSING THROUGH ME, YOU WILL NEVER BE RID OF ME! I WILL BE FREE! RULE OVER THIS WORLD AND EVERY MISERABLE CREATURE ON IT, EVEN IF IT TAKES ME AN ETERNITY!" Garlic Jr continued to shriek out in defiance even as he was sucked into the bottle, causing the portal to the Dead Zone to evaporate and everything being sucked towards it to fall to the ground.
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Once the destructive chaos had subsided, the entire battlefield seemed almost completely silent.
"Oh god, my head…" Launch let out a groan as she pulled herself onto her knees "Gonna have to sleep that one off like a bad hangover…"
"We all survived, I think that's the most important point here."
Launch's gaze snapped to the side to find Tien kneeling down next to her, to which she quickly pulled herself to her feet "Fair, I guess we oughta be glad we ain't dead. You sure as hell took your sweet time getting here though."
"Yeah I know, and I'm sorry about that. I had to leave Chiaotzu with Korin so he could get a Senzu Bean as soon as possible, and then with Garlic Jr and his men… To make a long story short, it took a lot longer than I thought it would."
"No shit, I thought we were all goners a few times there." Yamcha let out a chuckle as he picked himself up out of the rubble "Speaking of which, what happened to Garlic Jr anyway?"
"We managed to seal him away in the bottle, and all goes well he'll stay there forever. As for the bottle itself-" Tien cut himself short when his arm shot out in time to catch a small object being hurled at him, and he looked down to see the bottle itself resting in his palm "It's right here, okay then."
"Better than risking that bastard getting back out." Piccolo drew the attention of the group from his place perched the ruins of a nearby building "Wishing for eternal life always seems like such a good idea, until something like this happens. Bet he regrets that now."
"Yeah… well either way, at least he's taken care of now."
"And with such irony, that Garlic Jr suffered the same fate as his father." Kami made his way over to the group and was handed the bottle by Tien "Only this time, I'll make sure that there's no way for either of them to return."
"So what will you do with it?"
"I will keep this on the Lookout. As per my title of Guardian, it's my responsibility to make sure that neither Garlic nor Jr ever terrorize this world again." and on that note, Kami disappeared from the scene via Instantaneous Movement.
"Yeah. I definitely won't object to that." with that taken care of, Tien turned his attention back over to Piccolo "So… Part of me feels like I should thank you for helping us today, and helping me seal him away."
"Keep your thanks, I didn't do it for you." Piccolo scowled and looked away "It's like I told you before, I did it because I have had a score to settle with Garlic Jr and his men."
"I'm not surprised. I'll just take on board the fact that we're all still here."
"You do that." Piccolo leapt to his feet and was about to fly away from the scene, but paused and cast a look at Tien "If nothing else, you handled yourself out there better than I had expected you to. At least I know not all of Goku's friends are total weaklings."
"Am I supposed to assume that's a good thing?"
"No, because I know a potential threat when I see one." Piccolo gave a smirk "Once I've settled things with Goku, I'll be coming after you next."
"I never expected anything less." Tien's gaze hardened as he clenched both fists "But remember that when you do come for me, I won't be holding back."
"Hm. That makes two of us." and with that, Piccolo blasted off into the skies without another word and disappeared into the distance.
'Go ahead and try it Piccolo. Whatever happens, I'll be ready.' Tien relaxed himself slightly and turned his gaze back to Yamcha and Launch "Come on. Let's go home."
(End of flashback)
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And now back to the present…
"So there you have it." Tien finished recounting his story to Gohan, with Bulma listening from her place in front of the control panel "Up until everything with the Saiyans happened we were all pretty convinced that Piccolo was as bad as they could get… But if he wasn't there to help us, I'm pretty sure that we wouldn't be here right now."
"Wow, that… that sounds like a lot. But it is nice to know not everyone thinks Piccolo is a monster." Gohan looked up at Tien and gave a small smile "Thanks for that Tien."
"No problem. If nothing else it made the cleanup go a lot faster." he looked around at the now clean interior of the ship.
"So the Dragon Balls, they really can grant any wish then. Even to live forever?"
"Yep, though as I'm sure Garlic Jr can attest, that has its drawbacks. But considering what he was like, I hate to imagine what the Saiyans would've been capable of if they had been able to get their hands on the Dragon Balls."
"You know that actually reminds me." Bulma glanced back at the two of them from her place at the control panel "I've actually been pulling this over for the past couple of days. That creepy Saiyan you guys beat, Vegeta I think his name was. Where do you think he ran off to?"
"Huh…" Tien paused and shared a look with Gohan "I have no idea. All I know is he crawled into his pod and left the planet. Maybe to his homeworld?"
"No chance of that happening, from what Goku's brother told us the Saiyan homworld doesn't exist anymore. It got destroyed by some freak meteor thing years ago."
"Yeah, I did hear a lot of that from him before." Gohan spoke up "Wherever it was he went, he was hurt so bad in the fight I doubt he could've gotten too far. And maybe he'd choose a world that has the right technology for him to treat all the injuries he had."
"Fair. And you remember what else that Raditz guy told us? About how they made a living by wiping out the population of a planet and selling the place lock, stock and barrel to the highest bidder. I have to wonder if the world that Saiyan retreated to was one of their old renovation projects."
"Maybe. But still, he was in really bad shape so it'd have to be one with whatever he needs to heal himself."
"Either way there's one thing I'm definitely hopeful of." Tien's gaze hardened furiously at the thought of Vegeta "I just hope it's far enough from Earth that we don't see him again anytime soon, or that if he does come back then we have enough time to prepare. And let's not forget that it took him and his parter so long to show up the first time, I don't see how it couldn't be. Here's hoping at least."
"No argument here." Bulma scowled at the thought "How a planet like Earth ended up attracting the attention of guys like that, I'll never understand."
"I won't object to that either." Tien turned his gaze to the window of the ship as it continued to soar towards their destination 'If or when we do see Vegeta again, I can only hope that we're actually ready to face him this time… For all our sakes.'
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Meanwhile, a full 18 days after retreating from Earth, Vegeta's space pod finally closed in on a base planet, where the humanoid soldiers wearing scouters and armor similar to his were quick to whisk him away to a medical bay to heal his injuries. Once he was recoevered, Vegeta met with his self-proclaimed rival and fellow soldier Cui, who told him that Frieza was headed towards Planet Namek to try and get the Dragon Balls to make his own wish. Enraged by this, Vegeta wasted no time in snagging a scouter, hopping in a pod and heading for Planet Namek himself, in order to claim those Dragon Balls for himself.
Once he touched down, the race to collect the Dragon Balls would begin.
Power levels (flashbacks only):
Tien: 240
Tien (Tri-Beam): 500
Chiaotzu: 130
Yamcha: 170
Weighted Piccolo: 280
Unweighted Piccolo: 350
Blonde Launch: 15
Blue Launch: 5
Kami: 280
Ginger: 110
Ginger (full power): 220
Nicky: 100
Nicky (full power): 200
Sansho: 105
Sansho (full power): 210
Garlic Jr: 310
Garlic Jr (full power): 400
A/N:
I know a lot of you were expecting us to jump into the Frieza stuff on Namek right away, but keep in mind that the group had just under 5 weeks (34 days) on board that ship, so I decided to show a little bit of them putting it to good use. Without encountering a fake Namek or a group of space orphans. Plus I wanted to adapt as many of the DBZ movies as I could (aside from the original Broly trilogy), so here we go with the first one, that being Dead Zone, in the form of a flashback.
Of course keeping in mind that this version of the Dead Zone takes place during the five year timeskip, so Goku is off with Chichi and Gohan. In this case, the ones to face Garlic Jr are Tien, Yamcha and Piccolo, with a bit of Launch as well.
Anyway that's all I have to say for the time being. Thank you all for reading, and please support my Patre0n at the link provided below (spaced out because of the website).