*@* Dragonball SU *@* It Begins

[Master Rudy]

Just my luck.....had an awesome post I had been working on for THREE FUCKING HOURS and the whole damn thing crashed. That right there damn near made me want to flat out quit......

Obviously I'm not going to do that. I'm going to attempt to rebuild and retype what I had from memory. Sadly however this isn't going to be as detailed as the original. I just want you guys to know I had something extremely detailed and special going here

Since Heald has had ample time to veto some of my ideas but hasn't then I assume I'm good to go. Oh and please click the links and listen to the music as you read this. I feel it helps set the mood ^_~


Shitagi Summers
True power revealed......
------
If hell could have been a place on Earth at this very moment then this was it.

This being called Rothax was the apparent leader of these pirates and the one who seeked the Dragon Balls. In short order he was injuring and disabling all of us with what seemed to be no effort on his part. I myself was a little bruised and torn up. However I could still fight. Just as I was about to rejoin the fray however it finally happen.....one of us fell in battle. It was the android, Gamma. Before I was even able to blink he was just gone. Since he was just an android I had no idea if he was actually still alive. However looking at the damage I also wasn't sure if he could even be repaired. It was at that moment that I had a feeling of total helplessness. At the moment I knew we had no hope for survival.

No! There has got to be another way! You know damn well Goku and Vegeta would NEVER give up! What would they do?

Suddenly it hit me. I knew exactly what had to be done. However I briefly froze. Was there really no other way? I knew I had the technique needed to buy everyone time. But in the worst case I wouldn't make it. Even with that power I knew that my chances of actually winning this battle were very, very slim. However on the flip side I knew that if I didn't do this then we were already dead. It actually made the choice a bit easier to make. Once my mind was made up on the matter I then knew what had set Goku apart from so many others. It was beyond the simple goal of seeking out stronger opponents for the sheer love of battle. He was also willing to do whatever it took to help those in need no matter what. Later in life Vegeta became like that as well.

I guess that's the true mark of a hero......

Ripping off what was left of my torn gi, I was left standing in my pants and undershirt. At that moment Basawe hit the ground hard right near me. Perfect timing I thought to myself as I helped him up. We were at an angle where Rothax couldn't see what I was doing. While I was helping him to his feet I undid the string on my belt that was holding the small bag that contained the Four Star Dragon Ball and the Dragon Radar. Handing it to him I said "Keep them out of sight and get everyone out of here!" Basawe seemed confused as to what I was doing. Handing him my scouter next I told him "Don't forget it's still interfaced with yours. Give it to Zaito so you can keep track of each other." Still confused over the turn of events he attempted to ask me "What's going on? What are....." Shaking my head I flat out told him "There's no time to explain. Just get everyone out of here. Please tell my mother that I love her......tell her I'm sorry it had to end like this."

At that instant he knew. He wanted to protest but this wasn't up for debate. Quickly powering up I launched myself into the air where Rothax was and shouted loud enough to get the bastard's attention. "ROTHAX! This pointless slaughter ends now! Either you turn over the Dragon Balls and leave this planet or I'll have no choice but to kill you!" Upon hearing my voice he carelessly swatted Sandor away and turned his attention towards me. In a tone that suggested mild amusement, yet boredom at the same time he said "Oh? Forgive me if I seem a bit annoyed but did you just tell me to hand over the Dragon Balls or else I would die?" I merely continued to glare at him. His boredom was slowly turning to more amusement. "My......you were actually being serious when you said that, weren't you? I admire your courage kid. However I'm afraid it's not going to end well for you. In fact I'll even be a good sport and let you gather your power. Just make sure it's worth my time. Otherwise your death will be extra painful!"

Good.....He's a little too cocky about this. I bought everyone some time at least.....

Before I could start powering up however I felt a hand on my shoulder. Looking back I saw it was Retasu and she seemed a bit annoyed. "Exactly what were you planning to do to him? My scouter says your power level is only about 2500. You won't last ten seconds against him!" Not wanting to get into it I said "You've seriously got to learn to stop using that thing as a crutch. It's got it's uses but in the end it will be your undoing if you rely on it too much. Just focus on getting out of here. I can hold him off!" I should have known better than to argue with an elite Saiyan however. She wasn't going to accept that at all and only seemed to get angrier. "I came to this planet looking for Vegeta's heir! The prince! All you all is a pale imitation!"

That was the last straw for me. I had already seen my home attacked and people killed. It wasn't the fact that she was insulting me. It was the fact that her own stubborn nature was going to potentially derail my plan before it got off the ground. If that happened then we would all be dead with no one left to protect the Earth. Letting my power flair up slightly I turned to her fully and shouted "ENOUGH! Set aside your foolish pride for a moment! It's not always about you but since that's all you can understand then let me make it clear: YOU ARE GOING TO FAIL YOUR MISSION IF YOU STAY HERE AND GET KILLED! This is no longer open for debate. Get out of here with the others while you can!"

Retasu seemed caught off guard and was about to protest. However she wouldn't get the chance to do so. Turning my attention back to Rothax, I finally let all of my bottled up anger, rage and emotions to the surface. As my aura flared up around me I let out a scream as scouters all around the battlefield let everyone know I wasn't simply bluffing.

"2900 eh? Not bad for a child....." Rothax said. I smirked at this knowing full well that with that I had surpassed my personal highest. However I wasn't done yet. I continued to power up knowing full well that my actions right now would potentially save everyone. Somewhere below I heard the shocked gasp of Basawe. "3100.....no 3200! And it's still climbing!" Meanwhile Zaito's voice floated up to me as well. I could hear the awe in his voice as he spoke. "This is unreal! Is this the true power of a Saiyan?!" Finally from right behind me was Retasu. Being so close to me I could hear her scouter beeping the most. In a shocked whisper she said "No way......it's at 3500......you really ARE the prince of all Saiyans!"

Finally after nearly a full minute of powering up I could feel myself hitting my peak. Looking at Retasu I could see the shock in her eyes but the uncertain feelings were still there. Speaking calmly to her I said "As I said the scouter is useful but don't rely on it fully. There's no more time. You, Basawe and anyone else who can still move need to get the others who are hurt out of here. I can only assume that if you were looking for the Saiyan prince that you need some kind of help. When this is all over we'll talk. Just make sure you get those Dragon Balls before they do if I don't make it back!"

Without waiting for an answer I turned all my attention back onto Rothax. With a smirk I simply said to him "Sorry to keep you waiting." Rothax was greatly amused by this and hovered in the air with his arms crossed. "Well, well, well......that is much more than I was expecting our of you boy. However it's still rather disappointing. You only peaked at 3871! It's still hardly a challenge for me." Trying to keep a straight face I smiled at him. "Only 3800?" I asked. "That's funny Rothax......my power level should be at least 7500!" The remark drew seemingly no response from him at first........until he started to laugh. It was obvious that Rothax was not going to take me seriously until he saw it for himself.

I guess this is it then......I prayed I would never have a use for this technique but that can't be helped now.....

Just as his laughter was starting to die down and turn to a look of absolute annoyence over the matter I let my power flare up one last time. I was about to use a technique passed down in the Son family that had not been used in a real battle for at least 100 years. As my hair stood more on end than usual, my aura started to shift from blue to purple. Meanwhile everyones scouters started to go nuts again. Even the expression on Rothax's face turned to one of shock. Finally just as my aura shifted to red I let out a scream.

"KAIO-KEN!!!"

The real fight was about to start. I only hoped everyone heeded my advice and got the hell out of here......
------

I'm willing to bet nobody expected THAT!

Here's the deal......all that rage and anger pushed Shitagi to a new limit. Combined with the normal Kaio-Ken this will put his power level close to almost 7750. Under normal conditions it's extremely unlikely he'll be able to match this again anytime soon. He'll be able to hold his own for now and buy time for the others to escape. However naturally Rothax will still be stronger and will eventually beat him out.

Now Shitagi was hoping everyone would leave and come up with a new plan. However don't take that as you HAVE to leave. Your characters are welcome to stay. Also be aware in case you missed it that Shitagi managed to hand off his equipment and DB to Basawe while Rothax was fighting someone else.

In any case I think the end actually turned out a little better than the original. Have fun with it guys. In the meantime Blade if you haven't done so already then check your PM's

[Heald]

Okay guys, gonna have another plot twist...haha

Zaito Zhin

This Rothax guy meant business, that much was true. Zaito was panting and in much pain, propping himself up on one knee as he tried to summon the strength to get back up. He could only watch as Rothax completely annihilated the android known as Gamma. A severed arm landed near Zaito and he was feeling a mixture of horror and desperation, staring at the monstrous power of Rothax. Zaito winced as a sharp pain shot through his body and he steadied himself. He could only get angrier and more determined by these events and he began to gather ki in one hand when Basawe put a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't bother, you're no match for him."
Zaito held the power in his hand for a fleeting moment before letting it dissipate.
"So what, we're just going to let him kill us all?"
Basawe pointed towards Rothax and Zaito turned to look. Shitagi, of all people, was squaring up to Rothax, and suddenly Zaito noticed a look on Shitagi's face he hadn't seen before. Gone was the fearful teenager that would hesitate and instead he had the look of a warrior with no goal other than victory in his heart. Zaito could only look astounded as Shitagi began to challenge Rothax.
"He's either incredibly brave...or incredibly stupid," Retasu commented from behind them.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Shitagi's power began to increase exponentially. The ground around them began to shake and debris began rising. Retasu's eyes began to widen and Basawe's mouth began to open as they both stared on, intently watching in their scouters. Zaito didn't have a scouter but he didn't need one to sense Shitagi's mystical power rise.
"This is unreal! Is this the true power of a Saiyan?!" he exclaimed.
Zaito knew this was no natural boost, he was implementing some hidden technique he had not observed yet, although it was similar to one he had witnessed whilst at his school. Zaito closed his eyes and entered a meditative state, and began to feel out the source of Shitagi's power increase. In the darkness he could feel the lingering kis of his companions, the powerful yet steady ki of Rothax, but there was a bright, burning crimson aura that dwarfed them all in terms of sheer activity. Zaito concentrated on this aura, sensing the source of this power. He could feel Shitagi's ki flowing through his system, being created and burnt far more rapidly than usual, and the burning centre of this powerful entity was his heart, burning far more brightly than normal.

He opened his eyes and looked on as Shitagi continued to power up.
"This is a very interesting technique...harnessing your own willpower and technique to produce tremendous increases in power...but there must surely be a cost," Zaito commented.

"KAIO-KEN!"

Shitagi's aura then flared greatly, catching Rothax off-guard for a brief second, but that was enough time for Shitagi, who charged.

[Heroic Shitagi]

Shitagi landed a punch that managed to knock Rothax back a few feet right on Rothax's jaw. The group watched amazed that he not only managed to land a punch, but that it actually seemed to hurt Rothax! Rothax snarled and aimed a fist at Shitagi.

*FWISH*

Shitagi seemingly disappeared into thin air, as did Rothax a split-second later. Zaito felt for their kis as both of them battled at supersonic speeds, appearing and disappearing every few seconds as they aimed blows at each other.

Finally the both of them appeared on the ground, both holding the other's fist and the two of them began powering-up, creating a crater around themselves as they both began to yell.

"This is bad," Basawe stated, "Shitagi seems to be running at maximum, but Rothax looks like he is barely breaking a sweat."

Suddenly, Shitagi sized up and grabbed a tighter hold of Rothax's arm.
"KAIO-KEEEEEEEEEEN...TIMES...TWOOOOOOOO!" he yelled and his aura flared again, his power increasing much farther and his muscles grew instantly, gaining a surprise foothold over Rothax. He managed to push Rothax back before letting go and delivering a sharp kick to Rothax's stomach. As Rothax flew back a bit, Shitagi began performing a series of arm movements in front of him before flying both hands forward.
"BURNING ATTACK!" he yelled, unleashing a terrific blast of energy from his palms that sped towards Rothax. Rothax raised his arms as the energy hit, exploding with great power and ferocity.

As the explosion subsided, a cloud covered where the attack had landed. Shitagi was panting heavily and his aura began to decline, although it still remained crimson. As the smoke cleared, a figure could be made out. Everyone watched intently to see how Rothax had fared.

To everyone's horror, Rothax was completely unscathed, bar a singed arm where he had blocked the attack that was still smoking. He had a wide, terrible smile on his face.
"Not bad, not bad at all my boy. It will be a pleasure killing you!"
Shitagi's eyes widened and he looked back to the group.
"What are you waiting for! Get out of here! Now! I'll hold him off!"
He then turned to face Rothax and his aura flared up again.
"Bring it on, I'll give you the fight of yo-"
Shitagi winced and his aura dissipated, and his eyes opened wide again. He began panting heavily.
"No...not now...darn it, I needed to have practised this technique."
Rothax began laughing heartily.
"Oh dear, what's this, your little party trick is over already? I thought you were going to give me a fight!"
As Rothax chuckled, he raised a single arm and, palm forward, began charging an attack.
"Still, for your effort, I'll give you a worthy death."
Shitagi fell onto his knees, staring straight at Rothax. His face filled with desperation and fear, but then he began to smile.
"At least I gave it my best..." he said to himself.

Basawe and Zaito looked at each other, and then the rest of the group.
'Can we really let it end this way? Let Shitagi sacrifice himself so we might protect the Dragonballs?' Zaito thought to himself.
Zaito then stood up straight, closed his eyes and put his hands together in front of him, his index and middle finger on his right hand extended fully upwards.
"What are you doing?" Basawe enquired hastily.
"Helping," Zaito replied. A wind began kicking up and swirling around Zaito. He was ready to move when a loud yell surprised them all.

"MAKANKOSAPPO!"

Everyone looked up behind Rothax and even Rothax turned around. A bright, powerful beam of swirling energy flew at the speed of light at Rothax, who only just managed to dodge it by moving his torso, the beam only scratching his shoulder before hitting the ground and exploding. Zaito was just as confused as the rest of the group, but then saw Shitagi still in the firing line of Rothax's attack and he closed his eyes again, powering up. As the wind swirled around him at tornado like force, he seemed to disappear into the aether, before reappearing in a slightly transparent, ghostly form next to the unwary Shitagi, grabbing him and then disappearing again, before appearing again next to Basawe with Shitagi recovered. Basawe had no idea what had happened, but Zaito just nodded.
"Okay, now we go."
Basawe nodded and as they were about to fly away, the same voice that uttered the attack spoke again.
"Yes, we go now."
In the middle of the group was none other than Furuto on a magic carpet, the person who attacked Rothax becoming clear.
"Everyone grab on to me, now!" he yelled in a deep, gruff voice. Basawe and Zaito put a hand each on the magic carpet and Zaito flung Shitagi onto it, right next to the collected parts of Gamma. The other members of the group who wanted to grab on did, and in a blinding instant, they were gone.

When Zaito reopened his eyes, gone was the wasteland and gone was Rothax, instead replacing by white tiles, trees, a palace and beautiful deep blue sky. He could feel that they were up in the lofty heights of the upper atmosphere as a strong wind whistled through the area. As he gathered himself and pulled himself onto his feet, the immediate question on his mind was answered by Furuto.
"Welcome to the Lookout."
As the group looked around at this strange, yet oddly calm and homely sanctuary, another figure appeared. It was another Namek, yet younger than Furuto, if Zaito had to guess an Earth age, it would be around 18 or 19. He was dressed in more civil clothing than Furuto's gi, a white and red robe with a blue cape with a gold trim.
"Greetings Earth's warriors. I'm sorry if this all seems a bit strange, but all will be explained shortly, but please make yourselves at home and rest. I will send Furuto to collect senzu beans for your injuries."
"And who are you?" someone spoke up.
"This is Kuji," Furuto spoke up. "Guardian of the Earth, and creator of the Dragonballs."

---

Okay, feel free to make your characters at home, and to get a senzu bean. I've left it deliberately ambiguous if your character decided to stay, leave, or get on the carpet or not (apart from a few like Shitagi, Basawe and Gamma).

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

A popular TV call-in program once put up a picture of Van Osiku and asked if anyone recognized him. They received seventy-nine calls saying the caller had spoken with him, thirty-one saying the caller had slept with him, twenty-four claiming the caller wanted to sleep with him, and eighteen claiming that he had saved their lives.

Most interestingly, twelve people claimed to have killed him.

Within the bowels of Rothax's ship, long since forgotten, Van Osiku laid sprawled out on a metal bed. No one had paid him any mind since the battles had begun. His body twitched a few times, and he tried to raise his head.

He couldn't. It lifted once, twice, and then settled down again. His eyes were dull, and his skin had steadily turned more and more pale. His cuticles had pulled back from his fingernails, as well, which were loose and on the verge of falling out.

How all this had happened in the space of a few hours was anyone's guess.

"Oh... oh, my..." he whispered, even though it caused him pain to even attempt speech.

His hands finally reached down for his wine jug, only to find it was long since shattered, all the wine having drained away.

"Oh, no..." Van whispered.

This would prove to be the last things he would say. For a few moments later, his eyes shut, and they would not open.

Van Osiku was dead.

----

Many, many miles from the ship, there was a small mountain range, not too far from the ocean. Normally these mountains were silent, save for the noises of animals living their lives.

But today, they echoed with the sound of a guitar, playing a song that was written and popular ten years before. A voice accompanied it, singing something about diamonds, pearls and platinum.

A short, tan man stepped lightly through the foothills, dancing around rocks, his clothes billowing in the gentle breeze as he played his guitar. He set his foot on a rock, cut the song short, and took a swig from a jug of wine on his hip. For a brief second, he glanced behind him, to where a human-shaped impression was left in the dirt.

For all of five seconds, the man looked sad, and then he turned to sing again, only to stop.

Something felt odd.

Shutting his eyes, the man concentrated, finding it was coming from a small, dead tree nearby.

The man walked up, slinging the guitar over his back, and peeled away a broken section of bark. Then he reached in. His fingers slid over something, and he pulled it out.

In his hand was a small, orange ball, with three glowing red stars inside of it.

Now the man laughed. Tossing it in the air, Van Osiku pocketed the ball and continued to walk, singing about rubies and sapphires, and the red fire and green leaves they were found in.

[Bear]

Hammer


"You're going to lead me to those Dragonballs." Rothax stated, pointing at Hammer. However, before he could even open his mouth to respond, he was knocked unconscious by a surprise attack from the powerful alien.

When Hammer awoke, the scenery had changed dramatically. He felt himself lying on a smooth, flat surface of white tiles. Above him was a flawless blue sky, devoid of clouds or birds. Hammer took a long, drawn breath of the air. He noticed it was thin, suggesting high altitude. As his vision cleared, he could also see a few deliberately planted trees around him, despite being on a non-earthen surface. His head still thumping a bit from the blow he had taken earlier, Hammer slowly sat up. As he looked around, he surveyed a rather grim situation. Gamma, the Android, was in pieces. Basawe, Shitagi, and Zaito were battered and bruised. Hammer suspected that he had missed an intense battle. As he looked around for the others that had been part of their group, Furuto landed softly in their midst.

"Welcome to the Lookout." He said.

"The Lookout..." Hammer thought to himself, "The home of the Guardian? Why did Furuto bring us here?"

As Hammer remained puzzled, he spotted another Namek walking toward the group of warriors. He carried a wooden scepter and wore plain robes. Hammer had never seen him, but recognized instantly who he was.

Kuji...

"Greetings Earth's warriors. I'm sorry if this all seems a bit strange, but all will be explained shortly, but please make yourselves at home and rest. I will send Furuto to collect senzu beans for your injuries." Kuji said, motioning for Furuto to execute his task. Furuto bowed, and turned to take off. He was interrupted by Shitagi.

"Who are you?"

"This is Kuji, Guardian of the Earth and creator of the Dragonballs." Furuto answered, turning his head back and lifting off into the air. In an instant he was gone, leaving the others to stare at Kuji in their perplexion.

"Well then, shall we move inside where it is more comfortable?" Kuji spoke to the group. "Mr Popo has prepared a warm meal to sate your hunger and nourish your bodies. Please follow me."

As everyone climbed to their feet and began to walk toward the palace, Hammer stood but remained stationary. He did not know why he, or the others, were brought here, but he wanted answers. As he stood there, Kuji sensed his uneasiness and turned around.

"Everyone, please continue inside. I am sure you will find your way by the smell of the food!" Kuji said with a chuckle, allowing the others to pass. As they reached the large entryway of the palace's foyer, Kuji stood in front of Hammer.

"What troubles you brother?" Kuji asked, looking up at the much taller Hammer.

"Many things..." Hammer replied in his deep but soft-spoken voice, "firstly why have you brought outsiders here? The Lookout is the home of the Guardian, a sacred place. I do not understand why you would willingly let them set foot on these grounds."

Sorry for abruptly ending the post here, but I am exhausted and need sleep. I'll continue it tomorrow morning.

[Master Rudy]

Here we go!

Shitagi Summers
Fighting to a stalemate......
------
"HAAAAA!!!!!"

As soon as my fist connected with his jaw it had become clear that my Kaio Ken had totally caught Rothax off guard. His head had snapped back with such violent force that it would have surely broke the neck of a normal human being. Of course it went without saying that the two of us were far from normal humans. As Rothax locked eyes with me again and wiped the blood away from his mouth I saw something in his eyes. He seems to anger easily I thought to myself. If I can somehow exploit that then perhaps I may be able to close this gap even more. Plus it'll give everyone the time they need to get away if he's more focused on me. As soon as I saw this potential weakness I wasn't going to let the chance get away from me. Giving him a smirk I managed to bring forth the best mocking tone I could manage and said "Oh! That looked like it stung! You know Rothax if your not feeling up to this today then perhaps you could just give me the Dragon Balls? It'll really save me the time and effort of having to beat your ass into the ground."

The tatic seemed to work as a look of rage flashed across his eyes. With a growl that sounded animal like in nature he threw an extremely sloppy punch at me. Wasting no time at all I dodged out of the way fast enough to leave an after image behind. As I got behind Rothax and attempted to aim a kick at his head however he did the same. I had an idea of what was coming however. Instead of going with the obvious counter I followed my instincts. I acted like I was going to throw an elbow behind me. However instead of fully following through with the attack I brought my arm back forward and managed to land another left cross onto his face just as he appeared in front of me.

After that it was on as the two of us attempted to trade blows. Rothax proved that he could learn from his mistakes and avoid fighting sloppy. For every attack that was attempted, there was a block. For every block, a counter. Finally for every counter attack that was attempted, one of us had managed to give the other the slip with a well timed after image. The battle almost had the feel of a dance to it as the two of us attempted to fly circles around one another as we traded blows. The goal couldn't have been simpler: find that one opening that would tip the battle into our favor. The fact that we were both so evenly matched would have been much more exciting and enjoyable to me if it wasn't for the fact that this battle potentially held the lives of millions in the balance.

After several minutes of a flat out stalemate we had finally landed on the ground. However as I attempted my next attack it became apparent that Rothax was starting to figure out how I moved. As I attempted to throw a punch he managed to grab my fist. Without missing a beat I managed to get my left hand up in time to intercept his own attack. Unlike him however I only managed to get a hold on his wrist. This put Rothax into a much better spot. If he could power up enough to break my hold on his wrist then he'd have me by my right arm and I would be at his total mercy. It worked both ways however. Despite my disadvantage I knew that if I could break his own hold on me then it'd leave him open for a bigger attack. With no hesitation by either of us we both started to power up. The combined force of ki from our auras was so intense that I could feel the ground shaking as it started to shatter beneath us. However I was already at my limit. Judging from the power level readings I heard I knew that at most I'd be able to peak at only about 7900. If I was lucky then maybe I could break 8000. That would be my absolute limit however. If I pushed any harder while under the effects of a Kaio Ken then I'd start risking serious damage to my body. Rothax on the other hand seemed ready for more and I could sense that his own power level was slowly starting to overtake mine. As I grunted under the strain and pressure he laughed at me and said "Your good......but I'm better!" His grip was so hard that I could feel the bones in my hand getting ready to crack. If this went on any longer then at the very least he'd shatter my right hand. With no other options I did the only thing I could think of. Digging my heels deeper into the ground I looked Rothax right in the eyes and let out a scream.

"KAIO KEN TIMES THREE!!!!!"

The sudden increase in power once again caught Rothax off guard. The difference was that this time it would allow me to actually overpower him. With a quick twist of my wrist I managed to free my right hand. Wasting no time I grabbed his left wrist and with a firm grip on both of them now I pushed him back as hard as I could. This managed to send Rothax off balance just enough for me to quickly spin around and deliver a kick to his stomach that was hard enough to send him flying back. Now's my chance! I thought to myself as I landed back onto my feet. Quickly performing the needed hand movements I focused my ki and brought my hands into a familiar diamond formation......

"BURNING ATTACK!!!!!"

Rothax had almost no time to react to it. All he could hope to do was take the attack full force and hope to survive. Upon impact a blinding explosion of light and energy engulfed the area. I let my power start to subside briefly in case I needed it again. Just as the smoke started to clear however I froze in absolute horror. Aside from a burned arm and some light damage to his armor Rothax had managed to survive. The worst part of this was the fact that he looked like he was ready for much more. With an evil smile on his face he spoke as he mockingly started to clap. "Not bad at all my boy. It will be a pleasure killing you!" Not wanting to waste another moment I started to power up again but quickly got my second bad shock. From behind me I could feel several power levels slowly starting to flare up.

OH NO! Don't tell me.......

Quickly turning around I saw to my horror that the others had remained behind instead of escaping! I had to admit that if I was the one there I may have stayed as well. No part of me wanted to abandon a friend. Of course if it wasn't obvious by now that they had to escape then nothing would get them to leave. Even so I still wound up yelling at them to do so. "What the hell are you waiting for?! Go now! I'll hold him off!" Turning back to Rothax I took up a stance for a Kamehameha and began to prepare the attack. Despite how exausted I felt after my last attack I couldn't back down. "Bring it on! I'll give you the fight of your life!"

Suddenly as if someone had decided to play a very cruel joke on me my aura instantly flickered out. Along with that came absolute, pure exaustion as I fell onto my knees. Pouring sweat and panting I thought to myself NO! Not now! It seriously felt like I had been running wind sprints at the bottom of an active volcano. I had been fighting for so long in Kaio Ken form that I simply burned up all my ki. The combination of a third level Kaio Ken with my Burning Attack must have accelerated that drain to dangerous levels. Had it been a Kamehameha instead then the drain may have actually been enough to kill me. That was a moot point however as the irony of the situation was not lost on Rothax. He was unable to contain his laughter as he spoke. "Oh dear! What's this? Is your little party trick over already? I thought you were going to give me a fight." I managed to raise my head just enough to see him begin to power up the attack that would finish me. "Still.....for your effort I'll give you a worthy death." My head started to swim with thoughts of fear but somehow I managed a grim smile as I spoke to myself. "At least I gave it my best. I'm sure Goku and Vegeta will be proud of me once they hear about this."

The next few moments were a bit of a blur due to my exaustion. Somewhere in the distance I thought I heard someone shout Makankosappo. The next thing I knew I felt arms around me and I felt a sensation that was similar to the one I felt whenever I used an afterimage to quickly move around. Suddenly I was laying on my back looking up at everyone. However we weren't in the destroyed forest anymore. Instead I felt a calm breeze. Painfully I managed to get to my feet with the help of Basawe and Zaito. Near us was the Namekian I saw earlier at the tournament. His name had slipped my mind for the moment but there was no doubt that he was the one who saved us in the end. Looking around I saw a beautiful palace that appeared to be suspended in midair. Despite never seeing this place before I already knew where we were but I still couldn't believe it. I needed to hear it for myself to know this wasn't some wild trick of my imagination prior to death. Attempting to look at the Namekian I asked him a question that had perhaps the most obvious answer in the world. "Where.....are we?" Looking over at the group as a whole he responded "Welcome to Kami's Lookout." Weakly nodding I somehow managed to say "Kami's.....Lookout? Heh.....nice place you got here......."

Finally with those words my body finally gave out as I fell to the ground......
------

Considering all that had happened I just couldn't see Shitagi simply walking away with the group upon being teleported to the Lookout.

I'll leave Shitagi out for a bit to recover from his exaustion/injuries. Basawe's still got his scouter and needs to be aware that pretty soon he's going to be getting a message from a certain frantic demi-Saiyan scientist

EDIT-Also a quick recap for MoP as he's been gone awhile. As far as Dragon Balls are concerned Rothax's group has three, the Z Fighters have two and gav is currently attempting to defend/recover another. That leaves the one the newly revived Van has found. Since Rothax's group has tech similar to DR then expect company at any moment.

Also I think I speak for everyone when I say we all look forward to learning about Van's true nature ^_~

[Blademaster]

As far as Dragon Balls are concerned Rothax's group has three, the Z Fighters have two and gav is currently attempting to defend/recover another. That leaves the one the newly revived Van has found.

Shimuto has the one he found.

Rothax has the one he just took from the ground Retasu blew up.

Basawe has the one that Shitagi gave him.

Gavin has the one in the statue.

Van has the one he found in the tree.

Where did those other 2 come from?

[Heald]

Blade is correct, I think, although I think Blade and I had this same conversation 2 weeks ago.

That said, can any further OOC chat go to Mr Popo's thread? Also, can you please go read it now, I'm putting up an important announcement.

[Blademaster]

Basawe

"There's no time to explain. Just get everyone out of here. Please tell my mother that I love her... Tell her I'm sorry it had to end like this."

Those words rang in the Saiyans ears and wouldn't leave. In spite of Shitagi's sudden surge in confidence, power, and even his and the others' untimely rescue by a strange man on a flying carpet, all he could focus on was Shitagi's resolve.

That, and the Dragonball Shitagi had given him as a memento for his mother.

'Absurd.' was all he could think. 'It's... absurd. He's a human. He's WEAKER than my people. But he didn't think twice about stepping forward. He stared death in the face for his mother's sake. For OUR sake... A group of strangers who've sparred with him, threatened him and his planet, never even spoken to him...'

Basawe didn't know where he was now. He heard someone speaking to him, somewhere that sounded far away.

'On Ninjin, we all would have died.' he thought bitterly. 'Every thickheaded Saiyan would have kept flying straight into his fists. They'd turn on each other and try to kill Rothax out of arrogance, pride. Or they'd have been beaten nearly to death, then run like cowards. And I'D be blamed for it for being the weakling...'

Basawe removed the satchel from his waistband and took the Dragonball from it.

'This planet is weak... But it has something Ninjin lacks. Saiyans rely on strength... But the people here are kind. They have heart...'

It was then that Basawe noticed a strange sound - a LITERAL heart. A beat.

THUD.

Basawe looked over and saw Shitagi lying on the ground. He'd passed out from the strain of his battle against Rothax.

The Dragonball in his hand glinted, catching Basawe's eye again. He looked at it, then at Shitagi... He thought of how Shitagi had increased his power against Rothax. It was a great risk.

'That move he used... The Kaio-Ken. It was like my Boost, but far more exhausting on him.'

A slight grin crossed Basawe's face.

'Shitagi, we're gonna hold a little class session when you wake up.'

----------------------------------

Rothax

Rothax rubbed his eyes, spots still dancing in front of them after that attack had flown past him. He'd dodged it on a whim, the intensity of it making it seem more threatening than it actually was. Upon closer examination where it'd grazed his armor, there was barely a scratch on it.

"Blast that... whatever it was." he growled, his teeth gnashing. "They got away before I could get the Dragonball off of them..."

He clenched his fist so hard it nearly began to bleed, but then he remembered the second ball that was lying at the center of the crater that Saiyan girl had made. It'd suffice, for the moment at least. Rothax walked to the center of the wasteland and looked down.

His eyes popped open, pupils shrinking to the size of pinheads.

"IT'S GONE!?!"

Where there had been a Dragonball a few minutes earlier, there was indeed nothing now. Just a small concave seat in the dirt where it'd clearly been sitting moments ago.

'They must have grabbed it and ran...!' Rothax thought, his fist REALLY bleeding this time. 'Those cowards... How DARE they... They think they can make a fool out of me?!'

"Those... Those BUGS!" he snapped, eyes glowing a stormy blue. He took a step forward, his foot cracking the ground as it stomped down. "Those VERMIN! I was THAT CLOSE!"

STOMP!

Another, larger spiderweb of cracks ran across the ground.

"It's NOT FAIR!!!" Rothax howled, his anger finally reaching its limits - and then plowing a few thousand miles past them. Blue energy crackled. Veins throbbed. Drool dripped from his mouth. And there was nothing left within his reach to vent his anger on!

"I WANT A DRAGONBALL!!!!!" he screamed at the sky, his blue aura flaring with an intensity the likes of which Earth hadn't seen in decades. Dust flew around him, pebbles, STONES went flying. "AND I WANT ONE NOW!!!!!"

In desperation, he dropped down and pounded his fists against the ground, making a crater the size of a skyscraper foundation.

"NOW!!!!!!"

His claws extended and sliced through stone, air, dirt, whatever he could sink them into.

"NOW!!!!!!!!!!!"

His aura blazed like a wildfire; he extended his hands and began to fling blasts of energy in every direction.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!!!!!"

Rothax's muscles burst outward. His armor began to strain. His spines seemed to extend and sharpen like needles. With a scream of pure rage, his aura consumed him, sending shockwaves ripping across the ruined ground and blasting into the sky, blowing the clouds themselves apart.

When the dust and energy settled, a grotesque, bulbous arm emerged from the mass of light emanating from Rothax and fired a concentrated energy blast. Unlike the previous blasts, this one had direction.

It was aimed at the city the Earthlings had flown from.

Within a few seconds, Rothax's lips twisted into a sinister smile as he heard the blast hit, right on target.

----------------------------------

I don't think words can describe just how pissed off Rothax is at his loss. With nothing else to take his tantrum out on, he's aimed at West City.

I was gonna have Shimuto show up and give Rothax the Dragonball HE'D acquired, but I didn't wanna go Godmode and take control like that. Shimuto is Heald's business, not mine.

Oh, and in case it wasn't obvious, say hello to second-form Rothax.

[Asilynne]

~~Retasu~~
He wept, for there were no more worlds left to conquer...

It all happened so fast, it seemed like a blur.
As if things werent difficult enough with these earthlings, it seemed I had a much more powerful rival to contend with. This thing was far more powerful than me, indeed, than all of us, which meant I would be forced to work together with them a bit longer, at least until that pesky alien was disposed of.
The descendant of Vegeta's daughter, however, did take me by surprise. Not only did he foolishly step forward to attempt to defeat the new alien alone, when he was obviously too weak, but it also seemed he had a few tricks up his sleeve. I couldnt understand it, his powerlevel wasnt even close to being able to defeat him, and yet somehow he had summoned some previously unknown strength, more than doubling his powerlevel in the process.

But the surprises didnt end there.

Just as it seemed he would falter, and when I was considering retreat (so that I could live to fight another day, as any true warrior would have done) some....thing swooped down and called out to us to hang on. By instinct I complied, reaching out and grabbing hold of a swath of fabric---

---only to find myself in another place entirely.

I blinked, momentarily stunned by what had just occured. The scenery in that blink of an eye had changed abruptly. Gone were the ruins of trees, gone was the imposing form of the new alien. In its place were marble floors and pillars, well groomed landscaping and an expanse of bright blue sky. Unable to hide my gasp of shock, I marveled about how many surprises this planet seemed to hold.

I didnt like surprises I didnt understand.

But before I could demand where I was and what had just happened, a creature spoke up. "Greetings Earth's warriors. I'm sorry if this all seems a bit strange, but all will be explained shortly, but please make yourselves at home and rest. I will send Furuto to collect senzu beans for your injuries."
I frowned, being referred to as one of "Earths warriors" irritated me a slight bit. Vegeta's Descendant spoke. "Who are you?"
"This is Kuji," one of the Earthlings spoke up, as if that told me anything. Then he said something that interested me very much, and caused a good amount of my irritation to dissipate. "Guardian of the Earth, and creator of the Dragonballs."
Creator....of the dragonballs.... So this Green Creature was the one who created the dragonballs, it must be very powerful indeed. I studied it carefully, it appeared to be just a child. This child was powerful enough to create something as wondorous as the dragonballs?
"If you created them," I began, stepping closer to the creature and looking down at it curiously. "Then you must know where they are. You must know they are in danger. If you are so powerful why do you hide up here as the people you are supposedly guarding risk their lives for them?" I could hear offended sounds from the others, I must have broken some sort of rule or custom. But at the moment I didnt care. Too many strange things were happening, and we were all in danger. It wasnt the time to be polite. Crossing my arms I watched his face wear a flicker of sadness for a moment, before looking into my eyes with grim determination. "I regret that the people of Earth are in danger. But Im not a fighter, my power lies elsewhere. Even had I been a fighter, I would most likely not be allowed to partake in battle." Smirking slightly, I was possibly about to say something rude when his next words struck a chord in me. "If I die, the dragonballs will too. Without me, they will be useless orbs of stone."

I stood frozen for a long moment, staring into the distance as my mind processed what was just said. Without this little creator, without this "Guardian of Earth", there would be no dragonballs. There would be no wish. I couldnt let that happen.
To gasps of surprise I put a fist over my heart in the traditional saiyan salute, and kneeled in front of the Guardian. "In that case, Guardian, I swear that I will defend your life with mine, and in turn, protect the dragonballs. I will say that I care nothing for this planet," I heard some annoyed sounds coming from the others at this. "but this was where the Prince of all Saiyans chose to live his life and start a family, and therefore in his honor and memory will I fight." Standing up I looked into the stunned Guardians face. After a small moment Kuji recovered from my words. "Well then, shall we move inside where it is more comfortable? Mr Popo has prepared a warm meal to sate your hunger and nourish your bodies. Please follow me."

~*~*~*~

Inside the strange palace was a feast, one such as I have never before in my life seen. Strange beasts were roasted and placed onto platters, various fruits and vegetables were piled unto trays. Steaming bowls of a white substance I have never seen lay at each place of the grand table, as well as mugs of a spiced beverage. Plush colorful cushions lay piled on the floor near the table, and the smells..... Those heavenly smells reminded me I had had nothing but rations since leaving Planet Vegeta months ago. "By my father's tail...." I breathed, and, seeing the others began to partake of the food, I put aside all thoughts of dragonballs and aliens as I, too, dug in.

When my stomach was saited, my thoughts turned to the more pressing matters at hand. The Dragonballs. It became clear that we were in a race, one that could not be won with brute strength alone. One must be sly in times like this, when patience and intellegence outweighed the raw power. I doubted the Guardian would help me specifically look for the dragonballs, and the only other one I knew for sure that could track them was severly damaged. And thats when I could have slapped myself for not thinking of it sooner.
Of course! That false human is currently incapacitated. Nows the perfect chance to find the program that allows him to track the dragonballs and take it for myself.. All these surprises are affecting my ability to think it seems....
Standing up I moved over to where the servant was standing, watching us all eat with a big goofy smile on his face. "One of our numbers was injured." I spoke without ceremony to him. "Take me to the False Human." He seemed to know his place, smiling at me he nodded and spoke without a hint of being offended. "Yes miss, right this way. Another of your group is already with him, but with two helping the job should be done sooner. Its good of you to help."
Great.... I thought to myself. I was hoping to be able to do it alone, now Ill have to be extra careful not to get caught....
The False Human's pieces were lying on some cushions in another room of the palace. Next to them, trying to reconnect the delicate wiring joining his upper and lower halves was Vegeta's Descendant. Of course it had to be him.... He looked up at me with a wary smile, as the servant spoke to him. "She has offered to help, I wish you good luck in repairing your fallen comrade." With a small bow the little servant left, as I studied the body of the False Human, carefully avoiding the half-breed's gaze. "I believe it looks worse than it is." I spoke shortly, sitting down beside the False Human and pressing buttons on my scouter to find the diagnostic reading. I could feel Shitagi's gaze on me, studying me as my scouter outlined the broken connections and suggested new pathways around damaged sectors.
"And what does a "saiyan elite" know about making repairs? Last I checked all you guys were good for was destoying things." I could hear the bitterness in his voice, the rudeness, in response to my earlier attack on him. I remained quiet for a long moment, feeling his eyes bore into me with distaste as I took in the extent of the damage, before finally speaking in a quiet, matter-of-fact voice. "In the beginning, Saiyans were nothing more than tribal beasts. We fought against each other and against the race we shared the planet with. We adapted, we didnt create our own technology but we stole it and learned from it, learned to make it work for us. We took to the stars....and even when Frieza came, with politics and technology we didnt understand, we eventually rose above. We adapt, because that is how we survive." I looked at him with a stern face, my sharp eyes meeting his. "A Saiyan will always rely on their ownself first, their own strength. But when that fails, the need to survive is in our blood, and we will do anything it takes to ensure we do not die. Right now our race is stagnant, its feeding upon itself, and so perhaps I myself am going against the nature of Saiyans by putting the race before my own survival, but my Saiyan pride demands nothing less. My people must be freed of their own poison. And..." I chose one of the half-saiyans tools and began to make the delicate connections, my eyes turning back to the job at hand as my scouter flashed instructions for me. "If that means I must embrace technology to get the job done then so be it."

Shitagi was quiet for a long while as I worked. I wasnt sure what he thought of my speech, or what he thought of the saiyan race as a whole. I got the distinct impression that he believed the saiyans of Planet Vegeta werent his kin, his loyalties were to earth and its saiyan-mixes. Frowning slightly I thought about the history of Saiyans I had just outlined, as a realisation occured to me. Each time the Saiyan race was faced with self destruction, we became united against a force which threatened to destroy us all, in turn becoming stronger. In peace, our race turns on itself, we must always have an outlet for our violent tendancies, otherwise we begin to turn inward upon ourselves like what it happening now. As I worked an idea began to form, an idea that could possibly save our race from self induced extinction. But at the moment, I put the idea on the back burner, and as I worked, I waited for an opportunity to scan for the dragonball tracking program. I couldnt let Shitagi know what I was really after.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wow this was long @.@ Blade feel free to come get Shitagi for a training session ;D lol Otherwise in my next post Ill come up with something ^-~

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

One person in North City, now in his seventies, recalled meeting Van Osiku in a newspaper article about a local bar that was changing hands.

According to Mr. Holseff, he was playing piano in the bar when Van walked in. After a few moments, he took the guitar off of his back and sat on the end of the bench.

"He tuned his guitar, looked at me, and said 'Play "Stars in Another Heaven"', Mr. Holseff recounted. "So I did, and he picked it up on his guitar a second later. We went through the song once, and then he played it again, singing along this time.

"I asked him how he knew that song - it's a really old one - and he said, 'I... don't know.' He blinked, and I swear to God he teared up.

"But then he shook his head and he was back to normal."

About an hour after finding the strange ball, Van had sat down on a tree stump, just looking into it. Something about the ball confused him, and he turned it over and over in his hand, raising an eyebrow. His normal calm faded, and he shook his head, tossing the ball in the air and catching it.

The three stars were burned into his vision, and as he looked up, trying to work out what about the ball got to him, the stars seemed to expand, filling the entire sky...

A great city by the sea, dotted with massive towers, electricity dancing between them...

"I still say Great Brother Mastiu does not take this seriously enough..."

A woman in a shiny black robe, speaking before a crowd of hundreds...

Himself, wearing a robe of blue satin, and a young boy casting a net into the waters...

Three men with black streaks in light hair, doing battle against a single man in armor... and losing...

Blood along the floor, in a room with countless sealed chests, and a feeling of pain...

Van Osiku dropped the ball, which bounced once and rolled away, and put his head in his hands, his breathing heavy. Why was he seeing these things?

A moment later, he retrieved the ball and started into it again, wondering what it had to do with the visions.

-------

...WHADDA TWEEST!

[Master Rudy]

Shitagi Summers
How do you proceed when failure seems to be the only option?
------
Following my battle with Rothax, Kuji and Furuto had managed to use their powers to tend to my wounds. However despite my hunger I had opted to excuse myself for the moment. There were currently those of us that could not help themself. As a result it fell upon me to try to get Gamma back in one piece. The android was in pretty bad shape but fairly lucky. Rothax missed what appeared to be some kind of power core by mere inches. Had he hit that then there was no doubt in my mind that it would have resulted in an explosion that would have totally destroyed him. I knew that if I could at least piece him back together enough to power him up that with his help maybe we'd be able to get him fully operational again. My scouter was loaded with the blueprints to Androids #16 and #17. However aside from helping with the more basic connections and repairs it was going to be a pretty long job. #16 was fully robotic while #17 was a human interfaced with cyborg parts. Gamma seemed to be more like #17 in that respect. However I was dealing with blueprints that were easily anywhere from 115 to 130 years old. Trying to repair a newer android on old blueprints was almost like trying to fix a hovercar based on the blueprints of a ground model with wheels. It wasn't something that was suppose to be done. However I didn't really have any other options on the matter.

After about ten minutes of working on him I was eventually joined by Retasu. With all things I knew about her considered I was still a little concerned about trusting her fully. However she proved to me that even she was full of surprises. From what I could gather she was simply trying to end all the fighting and destruction that was happening back on Planet Vegeta. The fact that they had been reduced to this without effective leadership was no surprise. My grandfather had learned of these facts from the first group of exiled Saiyans that landed on Earth. As a result we knew full well what was happening there. However due to Vegeta's age upon first learning these facts he wasn't exactly able to go home to set things right. The same held true for my mother. From what I knew of her younger days she also had a desire to see what she could do to help. However due to living and growing up in peaceful times she lacked the power and training to be able to bring true peace and order back to the planet. As a result she mainly focused on running Capsule and helping the exiled Saiyans that showed up every few years or so adjust to life on Earth.

There was something else she said that caught my attention. It was in regards to putting the race ahead of her own survival. It was almost like she seemed ashamed of that. I could have been wrong on that however. Retasu was a very hard person to read and despite her recent show of support to protect the planet as well as her talking about these matters I couldn't help but feel there was still something else pushing her. Despite all this I still wanted to give her advice that I hoped would help her. "There's nothing wrong with putting others ahead of yourself" I told her. She gave me a confused look that almost seemed like it was asking me for more info. Before she could ask the question however I continued. "Near the end of his life one of the exiled Saiyans asked Vegeta where his power came from." This story seemed to have Retasu's intrest. Without missing a beat she asked "What was the Prince's answer?" I set my tools down for a moment and looked right at her as I told her the rest of the story. "His response to him was 'When you fight only for yourself and selfish goals you will one day find yourself unprepared for the day that you meet someone who is truely better and stronger than you. A selfish warrior will eventually hit a limit. Despite all the training and power increases in the world you will always find someone stronger. Remember that there is nothing wrong with fighting for those who can't fight or see the big picture. The day that you set unimportant matters aside will become the day that you truely have no limits to your power.' Vegeta managed to become a Super Saiyan and still lost battles. No matter how hard he trained he was always surpassed by my other grandfather. It wasn't until he stopped fighting for just himself that he finally managed to close up the gap with him. In the end Vegeta never was able beat Goku in a battle. However at that point it wasn't about winning or losing to either of them anymore. It was merely a desire to make sure that nothing could defeat their combined power or threaten their families while they were alive."

I was about to tell her more about the history behind Goku and Vegeta when a sudden power spike on my scouter caught my attention. Judging from it's direction it was actually coming from the forest we left Rothax in. Running to the edge of the Lookout I could see a faint glow on the horizon in the direction of West City. This is absolutely unreal! I thought to myself. Did our escape with our two Dragon Balls really anger him this much? At this point everyone else had also joined myself and Retasu. "He's so strong!" Sandor said sounding a little bit scared at the prospect that Rothax was no doubt toying with us back in the forest. Basawe showed no fear but appeared to be very concerned about the matter. "This can't be good. What the hell is he doing to generate so much power?!" Kuji seemed to be trying to clear his mind in order to get a sense of what was going on before opening his eyes and giving us a somewhat grim look. "It would seem your enemy is able to transform somehow. This does not bode well at all." Meanwhile I just stood there dumbstruck as I watched the numbers on my scouter rise.

8,123
8,842
9,561

"Dammit! It's over nine thousand!" I said to no one in paticular while watching the numbers continue to climb.....

11,101
12,452
14,099

Just as Rothax hit the fifteen thousand mark my scouter started to beep again. He seemed to be preparing an attack of some sort. That's odd. As far as I can tell he's not fighting anyone. Why would he...... Suddenly the cold horror of the situation hit me as I remembered exactly what city was closest to the battle site. Without wasting another moment I hit a few buttons on the side of my scouter and hoped that I could get my message out to Capsule Corp's emergency frequency before it was too late. "Shitagi to Capsule Corp! Emergency!" I shouted hoping my mother would get the message. "This is not a drill! Evacuate the building! GET OUT OF THERE NOW!!!" Out of the corner of my eye I saw Basawe rip off his own scouter. Due to the changes I made he would up getting the message as well and needless to say the shouting most likely didn't help his ear at that moment.

Without warning however a bright flash appeared and an explosion that resembled an atom bomb appeared in the distance where West City was. All I could do was let out a pained scream for my mother and the millions of others living within the city. As the cloud in the distance widened and grew I just let my depression overtake me as I turned and walked away from the group. I stopped walking when Rothax's full power level made itself known:

22,332

Feeling powerless to do anything all I could do now was once again let my anger surge to the surface and scream. "DAMMIT! How in the blue FUCK are we suppose to beat THAT?!" I heard a few gasps behind me which I assumed were related to my outburst. I was about to go on about how this was an impossible task when a voice from behind me caught me off guard.

"How are we going to beat that? Well you yourself can start by watching your mouth!"

My eyes widened since I wasn't expecting to hear that at all. Turning around quickly I saw that it was none other than my mother! While still feeling obvious grief over the other loss of life in the city it relieved me to no end that she got out of there. As I threw my arms around her in a big hug I could see that everyone aside from Mr. Popo and the Namekians seemed dumbfounded as to how she got here so fast. Deep down I knew however. Instant Transmission......seems like mom still has her fair share of secrets and tricks as well. As I let her go she turned to the group as a whole and with a serious expression on her face said "I'm sorry I didn't join up with the rest of you sooner. I got worried and was about to come as soon as I felt Shitagi's power level bottom out from his overuse of Kaio-Ken. Before I could get there however I sensed you were all transported here. I had just enough time to get a few supplies together before that maniac destroyed West City." Reaching into her jacket she pulled out two capsules and tossed them to the ground. One exploded and became a small supply crate that was stocked with more gi's, clothing and armor. I desperately needed to get out of my torn clothing so I grabbed some jeans, a white tank top and an orange jacket with black sleeves. I froze for a moment when I saw what the other capsule contained however. It was a small cargo jet about the size of a city bus. Not even bothering to hide my contempt for it I said "I seriously hope we weren't planning on taking a trip in that thing." On cue my mother opened the rear door which revealed that the cargo area had been converted into a small mobile lab. "Well you won't be riding in it obviously" she told me as she looked inside and checked some of the tools she had on the wall. "However you don't grow up being the head of Capsule and a daughter of a Z Fighter without being prepared for these sorts of things. I will need some help getting the bits and pieces of your android friend loaded inside. It doesn't look like he's doing too well. In the meantime if you guys can fill me in on everything that's happened since the tournament then I think we can start to formulate a plan to stop all this."

All I was able to do for now was help my mother load Gamma up onto one of the tables as the group took various turns explaining the events of the day to her. I hoped that once she was up to speed that she'd have some kind of idea I hadn't thought of......
------

Rather than go through the whole deal of healing Shitagi, waking him up, ect. I just cut to the chase and skipped ahead to him attempting to fix Gamma. Ditto for Retasu's speech. No sense in me typing it out twice. As for Vegeta don't worry about it if he seemed slightly OOC. You have to remember based on what we saw during Z's eplouge that he had softened quite a bit. As a result one can assume that more years may have eased him up even more.

Finally as a note to Brandy. With Victoria there you now have her, Shitagi and Retasu working to fix up poor Gamma. Don't think you lost your chance to steal the programming/info on his search abilities. In fact Retasu could potentially be aided by something in the mini lab! XD

[Bear]

I'm gonna get this started to keep myself in it, but I'm going out of town til Monday so I won't be able to follow up til then.

Hammer
~~~~~

As Hammer was speaking with Kuji, they both simultaneously sensed the massive energy source near West City. They turned to face outward off the edge of the Lookout, uneasy grimaces on their faces. As the energy continued to grow, Hammer turned to Kuji again.

"Is it him?" Hammer asked softly.

"I'm afraid so..." Kuji replied, "I've never seen a power so dark before. I--"

Kuji was interrupted by the catastrophe that followed.

"Oh no! West City!" Kuji exclaimed, turning back just in time to see the sprawling metropolis devastated by a single wave of pure energy. At this sight Kuji dropped to his knees.

"So many lives...in merely an instant...the horror..." Kuji continued, the frustration evident in his voice. Hammer continued to stand, silent, looking down at the earth.

After a few minutes, something inside him began to manifest.

As Hammer watched the destruction, he began to feel strange. It was as if he had seen this before...as if it was in his memory, his blood...

"This...this is just like Frieza!" Hammer thought to himself, "Just like what happened to my father!"

Hammer clenched his fist, and stared at it as the anger welled inside him. Memories of his training, the stories and history he read about his grandfather and the tyrant Frieza swirled about his head. This mindless destruction...was just like that.

At that instant something in Hammer snapped. The welling energy exploded from within him, coursing and flowing outward in torrents. Kuji looked on in amazement, then realized what Hammer was going to do next

"NO! You ca--" Kuji began to protest, but was unable to finish. Hammer was gone, flying at top speed toward the remnants of West City.

This is all I have time for right now. More OOC in Popo's lounge

[Heald]

Zaito Zhin

[Palace in the Sky]

The Saiyan Retasu made an outburst, but otherwise the group all seemed to be okay, apart from the broken Gamma and the unconscious Shitagi. The fighters were told to follow Mr. Popo inside the palace where inside a feast was laid out for them.
"Please, Zaito, allow me," he said, indicating for Zaito to give him the unconscious Shitagi. Zaito nodded and carefully laid the teenager into Mr. Popo's hands, who then laid him on a couch at the side of the hall. Zaito looked down at the unconscious teen and gave a small smile.
You saved our hides there kid...if you hadn't held Rothax off with your technique, there's no telling what would happen.
"Please Zaito, eat, I shall tend to Master Shitagi."
Zaito nodded and sat down, where the rest of the team, apart from Shitagi and Gamma, was already tucking into the feast that was laid out for them. Zaito at first was astounded; these Saiyans had a huge appetite, and plates upon plates were piling up. Zaito looked across the table and there were literally hundreds of things he had never seen before. Back at his monastery, he was content with boiled rice, fish and legumes, whereas these were practically luxuries unheard of. He sampled every food he could reach without having a hand bitten off by a Saiyan, choosing to eat in a civilised manner instead of wolfing it down.

He turned to Hammer, who remained standing with his arms folded.
"Are you not eating?" he inquired.
"Nameks don't really eat. I'm fine with some water," he said and he turned away, only to see Furuto walk in with a small bag in his hand.
"Here, everyone take one."
He threw a small bean to everyone in the room. At first, everyone looked down at the bean confused; why would they eat a tiny, uncooked bean when they had this feast in front of them.
"Mr. Popo, give one to Shitagi," he said and threw one to Mr. Popo, who nodded and, catching the bean, put it in Shitagi's mouth and gently forced it down his throat, rubbing his throat to ease the swallowing.
"Excuse Namek, but what exactly-" Retasu began, but then Shitagi leapt to his feet in a confused, yet completely revived state.
"What, where, how- oh!" he said, looking towards the group.
"These are senzu beans; they may look small, but each bean will fill you up and rejuvenate you to your full strength."
Sceptically, each person ate their bean in turn and each instantly felt their strength return and their injuries heal. Zaito felt his bruises, cuts and broken ribs heal themselves as well as all his aches and pains disappear.

Retasu excused herself from the table and Hammer left to converse with Furuto and Kuji. Filled up from the bean, Zaito left the table and walked outside. The strong winds from being so high whipped against him and he felt revitalised every time a gust blew through him. He walked to the edge of the Lookout where both Furuto and Hammer were looking down.
"Say Furuto, how high are we, exactly?" he asked, looking down over the edge of the Lookout, unable to see anything below but blue sky and cloud.
"The Lookout remains around 60 miles above sea level, and just below the edge of space. It is quite literally the highest place on the planet before reaching outer space."
"60 miles?!" Zaito exclaimed. "That's incredibly high! How long would it take to fall to Earth, freefall?"
Furuto looked down and within a second replied,
"Around 10 minutes, under if you reduce drag."
Zaito looked down and smiled. One day he was going to jump off here, but for now he was content with just relaxing. He looked out to the empty sky; it was nice to not actually be fighting anything for once or be rushing around, but-

[Evil Uprising]

His train of thought was interrupted by an explosion of power on the planet's surface. Both Furuto and Hammer were surprised by it too. There was no mistaking that energy signature: Rothax.

The others came rushing out from the palace as well in order to witness this power, and those who had scouters stared fearfully at them.
"Unreal...this is like no other power I have ever experienced...and to think he was only toying with us...with power like this, he could have destroyed us all in a heartbeat."

The power surge culminated in a massive blast aimed at West City. Everyone looked on in horror, and Kuji especially felt hurt by this attack on innocent civilians, and Shitagi, understandably, was both angry and upset, due to both his family and home being in West City and feeling powerless in the face of such a strong energy. His ki was flaring up, almost as if he was about to charge down to Earth in some vain attempt to stop Rothax.

Suddenly, the mood changed, thanks to the arrival of Shitagi's mother, who Zaito recognised thanks to the healing she gave him. He smiled, thankful that she had been spared from the carnage in West City, but unexpectedly, Hammer flew up, saying farewell briefly and before anyone could protest, he was gone.

Zaito jumped up, ready to follow him, only for Furuto to stand in his way.
"Zaito, no! There's no way you can face that power by yourself!"
Zaito angrily stared at Furuto, then calmed down and landed again, as did Furuto.
"Okay, so we just leave Hammer to fly off to his doom."
"Rothax will not risk killing a Namek," Kuji interjected. "He may get hurt, but he has chosen his own path. However, as Earth's last defence, you warriors are in dire need of training, and we don't have any time to do it."
Basawe walked over and sighed in agreement.
"Maybe if we trained for a full week, we'd be strong enough, but in a week's time we could all be dead."
Kuji and Furuto looked at each other, nodded, and Kuji turned to the assembled warriors.
"If you are ready to begin training now, and take up your responsibility as one of Earth's defenders, then follow me."
Zaito and Basawe looked at each other, nodded and followed Kuji. Retasu and Shitagi were needed to stay behind in order to repair, so that left Sandor and Kura as well who followed them.

They were in front of a large wooden door and Kuji turned around to speak to them.
"This...is the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. This is perhaps the single most important and powerful room on the Lookout, and I caution you now: entering this room is not a task to be taken lightly. If you feel you cannot handle the power, then it is better that you leave now."
The four warriors turned to look at each, all staring into each other's eyes with determination. They then turned to Kuji with these same eyes. Kuji nodded and opened the door, walking inside, beckoning the others to walk in with him.

[Hyperbolic Time Chamber]

"This is the living area, and the only physical part of this room, or in fact this dimension."
Zaito looked around, taking it all in. The air felt different, the entire atmosphere felt strange and alien. It felt like they had left Earth, or their universe, and somehow travelled into another dimension.
"I shall now explain this room."
The four stopped inspecting their surroundings and turned to face the Guardian.
"Once that door shuts, this room's time dilation takes effect. Put simply, an entire year in here will only last a day back on Earth."
This stunned the assembled warriors, who couldn't believe this at all. A year's worth of training in a day? That wouldn't just be enough to catch up with Rothax, they could overtake him entirely!
"However, we don't have a day, and even if we did, there is no way any of you could last a year in here. Even Earth's most celebrated warrior, Goku the Super Saiyan, could only survive in here for at most a day, and his power would eclipse all of your powers combined."
"So why are we seeing this room then?"
"An Earth hour should be sufficient training to at least be on the same level as Rothax, now we have seen his true power, but that all depends on how much training you all do. An hour will equate to about 17 and a half days in here."

"I'd hate to admit it, but even that will probably not be enough...Rothax is incredibly strong and I have never been able to increase my strength that much in such a short span of time," Basawe commented. Kuji gave a small smile.
"Training in here is not like training on Earth. Once you leave this rest area, the gravity increases to ten times Earth's gravity. It will likely take you at least the first day to fully adjust, and by then, your strength will have already significantly improved. Furthermore, the air is thinner in here too, meaning you will get tired more quickly. Adjusting to both the gravity and the air density in here by the first day would be a dramatic improvement, and more than 17 days training on Earth will do you. Put simply, training in here for 17 days, provided you both put the effort in and can handle it, will be worth over half a year's worth of training on Earth."
The warriors began to smile and look at each other.
"So one hour in here, and we'll be strong enough to take on Rothax?" Zaito asked enthusiastically.
"Only time will tell," Kuji replied. The four warriors began to get ready to train, when Kuji once again spoke out.
"Just be wary; stay close to the rest area: the further out you go, the more dangerous this place becomes. I cannot guarantee your safety, and for your own sake do not risk it: even Goku nearly died when he ventured too far into the chamber."
With that Kuji walked out the door and closed it behind him. The four warriors all looked at each other with renewed vigour.
"I guess we have no time to lose. We have 17 days to prove to the others how strong we can become," Kura said. They walked towards the empty part of the chamber, looking around.
"There's only two beds in here," Sandor noted.
"Looks like we're going to have to sleep in shifts," Basawe replied.

They all took a step over the paving of the rest area and they all felt the gravity hit them, forcing them to crouch as they tried to walk out.
"Shhhhhhhee...he wasn't kidding about the gravity, was he?!" Zaito yelled.
"A day of this? We'll either all be super-strong or...YAH!...be crushed!" Basawe replied. Kura grimaced but then gave a devilish grin.
"Say boys," she spoke up. Basawe and Zaito both turned to face her, struggling to turn their necks in the intense gravity.
"How about a race around the rest area? Might as well have some fun while we train!"
Kura and Sandor then began to crawl around the side of the rest area. Zaito and Basawe quickly changed direction and began following. The gravity was definitely taking its toll, with both Basawe and Zaito's faces streaming with sweat.
"Jeez, at this rate, it's going to take us an hour just to complete one lap!" Zaito said. Basawe nodded but then smiled.
"Yeah, but we can't let those girls beat us, that's for sure!"

---

Okay, so I decided to drag Basawe, Kura and Sandor into the chamber with me. Made the most sense given the circumstances.

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

There's a story along the coast. On nights when the sky is clear, the moon is dark and the stars are out, you can hear music on the wind.

That music comes from the top of a mountain, they say, and it's being played by a lost and lonely spirit. He lost his home a long time ago, so the story goes, but when the stars are bright he can see where it used to be.

The spirit stands on top of the mountain, playing his music for the people of his home, and looks to the stars, looking for the one he used to call home.

This story is over one hundred years old.

The wind blew cold in the valley, and Van Osiku wandered along the snowdrifts, still holding the ball in his hand. Every time he looked into it, he could see the same images as he had before, but they all lasted a little bit longer.

What they were, however, he didn't know.

Now that he had thought about it, had time to consider what the ball and its images meant, Van Osiku realized he wanted to know more. There was something... something inside that demanded he know what the images meant.

And he did have a lead. The ball in his hand had a very... interesting energy. It was distinctive, and stood out like a sore thumb. If he shut his eyes, he could sense them with but a second's concentration.

Somehow, the energy was familiar, though he hadn't felt it before... Intimately familiar. He tried not to think about it, focusing on sensing the power.

The ball hovered between his hands, and Van shut his eyes, letting his senses pulse through the world. It got four hits, and he tried to determine which would be the easier to acquire.

One was in the possession of a creature he couldn't even begin to identify. That did not seem like a smart choice to go after, as he could tell his own power was not really a match for it.

One was isolated, in the possession of a fairly... weak individual. Or rather, in the individual's proximity.

The other two... one was beneath the ruins of a city, to his west, while the other he could not find - wherever it was, it was on the planet, but he could not pinpoint it.

Van made his decision - he would look for the one under the ruined city.

Up to this point, Van had never flown. But as he held the ball in one hand, he decided to try it. His feet left the ground, and he flew west, towards the sensation.

He had left his guitar sitting on a rock in the valley.

[Blademaster]

A picture AND a post? For BOTH of my characters, no less? It must be your lucky day!

Rothax

"Attention all units." Rothax's still-furious voice snarled into his two-way. "If any of you have found a Dragonball, bring it to me NOW. I repeat, if any of you have a Dragonball - and you had better - I demand to know about it, and have it, now. In fact, I want it five minutes ago."

Rothax was met with silence.

"REPEAT," he snarled between his teeth, a blood vessel bursting in his head, "one of you had BETTER have a Dragonball, and I demand to know of it, and have it in my hands by the time I finish this sentence. Now SPEAK."

This time, static replied to Rothax, before quickly being replaced by a familiar, chilling voice...

"I have a Dragonball in my possession, sir."

Rothax's anger was gone in an instant.

"What?! Shimuto, is that you?" he barked. "You have a Dragonball? Where are you?"

"Please, calm yourself sir." Shimuto's voice replied. "I was conducting reconnaisance on my way back to the ship. I'll bring the Dragonball to you now, if you want me to."

"Yes I want you to! I just said that!" Rothax shouted, a toothy grin on his face. "Thank the Kais I have a man as reliable as you on the ship. Have you received word from anybody else about any other Dragonballs?"

There was a brief pause, before Shimuto replied, "No sir."

"Typical. Just bring me what you have, then."

"Yes, sir."

Rothax let the radio go dead again and he turned back towards the city he'd just blasted.

BOOMF!

"AAAGH!!!" Rothax howled as a blinding sphere of energy smashed into his face, momentarily blinding him again. He rubbed at his watery eye, then turned his attention fully to whatever had just struck him.

It was the Namekian.

"What... You!" Rothax yelled, shocked. "You're back!"

The Namekian just glared hatefully at Rothax...

"This is GLORIOUS!" Rothax laughed, pumping a fist into the air. "I don't believe my luck! First I get a Dragonball and now I don't even have to hunt you down again! Ahahahahahahaha!"

The Namekian continued glaring at Rothax, evidently a bit put off by the invading alien's... unusual happiness.

"Alright, Namekian, let's go!" Rothax said, gesturing for the him to follow. "Back to the ship. I'll have a meal prepared for your arrival."

The Namekian looked surprised, but he didn't budge.

"I think you're misunderstanding me." he said. "I didn't come back here to help you. I came back here to KILL you."

--------------------------------

Basawe

He didn't know how long he'd been here. Two days, three days... Back on Earth, it probably hadn't even been ten minutes. But if Basawe had understood that Namekian boy correctly, then he'd spent no less than the equivalent of 60 hours inside the chamber.

Initially, Basawe wasn't sure why he'd allowed himself to be led into this strange place. It could have been some sort of elaborate trap, unlikely as that seemed. But more importantly, he had wanted to speak with Shitagi. And now he'd have no chance to, unless he stayed in the chamber for another hour.

Something else he was not at all fond of was who he shared the chamber with. Though Zaito was good company, the two women with him were Saiyan and part-Saiyan, and it showed... They weren't as pompous as Retasu, but that was of little consolation. He knew he could barely touch Retasu in a fight, but Basawe wanted to keep an eye on her. He trusted her as far as he could throw her. And by Saiyan standards, that was not very far.

Basawe stepped off the rest area again. By now, he'd become accustomed enough to the intense gravity to stand up straight in it. His hair still felt like it weighed 100 pounds, but he could walk and spar properly in it.

'Retasu...' he thought bitterly, stepping forward. 'Rothax... Even me... The people of this world are in grave danger, and for what reason? Why do they deserve this...?'

He took another step, removing something from a pouch at his waist as he walked.

The four-star Dragonball.

'The wish... It's because of these that this planet is under attack...'

Another step.

'If they were destroyed, or flung into space, these people would be safe.'

Basawe suddenly gasped and fell to his knee. The gravitational pressure had just increased. He looked back... The rest area was farther away than he'd thought.

'Going out too far is dangerous...' he remembered, picking up the Dragonball and pocketing it again. 'But I can't afford to be weak once time is up.'

He pressed a button on his scouter and looked down at his hand.

74528363557814969841778435678983154783256716473326

...

2739.

"My power level hasn't even doubled yet...?" Basawe growled, punching the ground. "Blast it... This is no good! How will I help anybody at this right? I'll be lucky to break the 5,000 mark if I keep this up."

Basawe strained and forced himself back onto his feet. He threw a punch. It was slow and lazy. He threw another. And another.

2740.

Soon enough, Basawe's punches were flying at breakneck speed, as though the gravity wasn't affecting him at all. He tried a kick and stumbled. Another, and he faltered. Another, and he stayed on his feet.

2750.

'I'm doing it,' Basawe thought, smiling for the first time since he'd met Phil at the stadium. 'I'm really doing it!'

2763.

'It's still too slow, though...'

Basawe gritted his teeth and took another step. The pressure increased again. He took a jogging step. His knees buckled, but he forced himself up. Again, and again, he fell and forced himself up.

2803... 2893... 3061...

Basawe looked back. The rest area was far in the distance now... He could barely see it.

'Getting dizzy...' he thought. 'The air's thin... Maybe I should just practice resisting the gravity for now.

Basawe continued onward, forcing himself forward. He refused to crawl. Inch by inch, he forced himself forward, he forced himself to stay standing. He lowered his head forward to keep his neck from snapping, and he spread his legs to try and keep his body weight evenly distributed.

3374... 3425... 3499....... 3498...

Basawe paused and suddenly fell to his knees.

'It's stopped... N-no... Something's wrong... Not now!'

3393... 3147... 2838...

Basawe fell to his hands and knees, sweat beading on his brow. His disease had just kicked in, and at the worst possible time.

2517... 2082... 1692...

With a weak groan of defeat, the gravity overtook Basawe, and he slammed into the floor, what felt like thousands of pounds slowly crushing him.

1182... 875... 618...

"H... someone... help..." he muttered, his dizzy eyes glossing and beginning to close.

472... 261... 117...

[Kuro Espeon]

Finally!! It is finished!

Kura:

‘How do I get myself into these things?’ Kura thought irritably, staring out into the endless void that was this strange time-defying, gravity-bending, mind-boggling chamber. The atmosphere was so intense, almost unbearable, and she constantly had to fight to keep herself sane. ‘So many things have happened recently, and they all happened so fast… I don’t even know what’s going on anymore.’

First, Retasu had crashed landed in the middle of the Tenkaichi Budokai, looking for the successor to the late Prince Vegeta. Then they had all been attacked by aliens looking for the Dragonballs, which they were then told could be used to summon the Eternal Dragon and be granted two wishes. Then after finding a few of them they all got their asses royally handed to them by some freak named Rothax. Just when it looked like they were done for they were magically transported to the mysterious Lookout by Furuto and told by that Kuji fellow that there was a place where they could get a year’s worth of training in a day. Impossible, right? Apparently not.

‘In fact…why am I even doing this?’ Experimentally, Kura threw a punch. It was slow at first, but as she repeated the movement it slowly got faster and easier. Considering it had taken her the first few days in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to simply get used to walking this wasn’t too surprising. ‘Oh right… to get stronger. To be able to stop that bastard Rothax from getting the Dragonballs. I’m the one that needs them after all…’

Suddenly her punches had a new force behind them, one filled with a mixture of sadness, regret and anger. Then she moved on to combinations of punches and kicks. The fire behind her eyes flared up in a sudden surge of emotion and adrenaline. As she slowly got stronger and faster, she did a couple of backward hand springs and on the last flip launched herself up into the air. She began to form a ball of Ki between her hands, focusing as much of her energy as she could. When the power reached its zenith, she arched back and launched it into the distance. It quickly disappeared into the void, but Kura soon heard the faint sound of an explosion in the distant.

Breathing heavily from the energy she had just exerted, Kura sank back down to the ground. She was surprised at how much this chamber was taking out of her, but she could already feel herself getting stronger overall because of it. It was definitely working, but she wasn’t sure how much longer she would be able to keep this up.

“Well then,” she said after she had caught her breath, “Guess I’d head back to the rest area for now. No use overdoing it and killing myself in the process. ….Huh?” Something caught Kura’s attention. A power level not too far from her, it felt like Basawe’s, and it was fading rapidly. Driven more by curiosity than concern, Kura made her way toward it. After a short while she saw a body in the distance, flat against the ground. Nearing it she could make out Basawe’s pained expression.

‘I doubt the gravity here could have affected him THAT much,’ Kura wondered, ‘Unless… his condition?’ Kura remembered about Basawe being born with a rare birth defect, which was why he was always picked on for being weak back on Planet Vegeta. That would probably explain why his power level was dropping so rapidly. Kura hesitated. As she heard a small plea for help escape his lips, she was torn. As she looked at the body of Basawe, defenseless and broken, it brought back an old memory. For the briefest moment, who she saw lying there was not Basawe, but Kabu, her murdered husband, and she felt something stir within her that she hadn’t felt for quite some time. Was it… pity? A long, drawn-out sigh escaped her lips, a mixture of frustration and sympathy.

“Well, I guess I can’t just let you die out here, can I, Basawe? Honestly, you’re such a hassle.” Making a split decision, she moved toward him again to help him, but suddenly, as if she had crossed an invisible threshold, the gravity in the chamber suddenly got stronger than ever before. Caught off guard, Kura fell to her knees and let out a small gasp of pain and surprise. She had to brace herself with her arms in order to keep from falling flat, and the sudden exertion brought beads of sweat to her brow. With a small grunt she managed to push herself back to her feet and made slow, dragging steps toward Basawe, whose energy was all but gone now. By the time she reached his side she knew she wasn’t going to be able to lift him, at least not until she could get him closer to the rest area. Summoning up as much strength as she could she bent down and looped her arms under his and pulled as hard as she could, dragging him back slowly but surely.

“Lucky…for you….Basawe… I’m not… a normal…Saiyan,” she managed to say in between pulls, “If I…was…you’d be….totally… screwed…”

Pretty soon Kura felt the intensity of the gravity slowly decreasing. Once she had gotten him back to the point where the rest area was in view, she figured she would be able to lift him. She knelt down and managed to get up onto her back, holding his arms around her shoulders like a back-pack. Still drained from being so far out into the chamber, she barely had enough strength to get him back to the platform and dropped him onto one of the beds. She fell back against the wall and slid down into a sitting position on the floor, resting her arms on her knees, trying to regain her breath.

“Don’t misunderstand…” she said, more to herself than to the unconscious form of Basawe, “I wasn’t doing that for you…” She trailed off as she leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes.

Hope you don't mind the help, Blade. 8D

[Ultimate Charizard]

Im finally back. Sorry this took so long, had to do alot to motivate myself but i should be back from now on . This is going to be alot shorter and rushed than what i had planned but basically it was just alot of fight padding.

ON WITH THE FIGHT! And, Gave has a Theme now! lol.

Gav
--------

He almost didnt see it coming. A flashing image of a foot in the corner of his eye made him duck on reflex and jump back, hopefully out of range of a follow up attack. He dropped into a fighting stance and stared at Blaque who was just recovering his balance after missing with his kick.

"He's a quick one!" He cackled before lunging again. This time Gav saw it coming and managed to get his hand up to block but was quickly pressed to deflect another strike, and another in quick succession. Gav knew he was fast but he was struggling to match the pace of his assailants attacks, nevermind launch an attack of his own and although there seemed to be little power behind them he could feel his forearms begin to sting from the rapid blows. He did his best to read Blaque's style, the way he moved and pressed the advantage never gave his opponent an inch of an opportunity but Gav could see one coming, there was only so long he could keep this up, already Gav could see the beads of sweat on his brow and soon he would have to break off for a moment, if Gav could strike then he may have a chance.

'There!' Gav thuought, seeing his chance but before he could take a step forward Blaque vaulted clear into the air, a neat backflip, just high enough Gav noticed as he looked back down for Whyte to pass underneath, his fist cocked back before driving a punch towards him. The attack had been much slower than Blaque's shots but the element of surprise allowed it to connect. Gav was able to get his block up in time though the sheer force of the blow was phenominal. It drove him back, lifting him off his feet and forced a cry of pain as the guard was overwhelmed and he crumpled against a wall, barely concious from the single punch he fell in a heap, cracked and broken concrete from the wall falling around him.

"Dont try to read us" said Whyte, smirking and stepping over to the broken form infront of him. "Do you think we dont know our own weaknesses?"
He hoisted Gav by the throat, holding him effortlessly off the ground. Seemingly examining his face and he looked dissapointed as he saw Gav's eyes were struggling to focus.

"And i had hoped for so much more." he sighed and looked at Blaque. "Mr. Blaque would you be so kind as to retrieve the Dragonball".

Gavs groaned quietly as he heard the word Dragonball and Whyte smiled. "Well, it seems he's still with us after all".

There was a crunging noise as Whyte put his fist easily through the head of the Dragon statue, retrieving the item encased within it and Gav groaned again, more a growl this time, his body tensing and a slight wind blew through the courtyard. Blaque raised an eyebrow and looked at the human he held by the throat.

"Its all ours now, and soon our employer will combine it with the others..." he said, a theory foriming in his mind. "..and you will know that you failed"

The courtyard was filled by a scream of emotion and Blaque struggled to keep his footing at the sudden explosion of power.

"What the Bloody Hell!!!" exclaimed Whyte, knocked back by the explosive release.

Blaque recovered himself quickly enough to look into Gavs face which was now staring back down at him. His eyes were still rolled back in his head but there was still a look of anger on his face. "Emotion responsive power levels..very rare..." Blaque mused calmly, "...or our boy here isnt as Human as we first thought, also rare for this planet. Either way...."

He punctuated his sentence with another powerfull punch, straight into Gav's gut. The expression blanched and then faded, his eyes finally closing into full unconciousness.

"...I believe we may have found something else of interest for our Employer" he finished, tossing the Gav's limp body across his shoulder and taking to the air.

-------------------------------------
Basically Gav has been kidnapped, As was said in the signup he's not quite human, somewhat of a scientific curiosity, Rothax is gonna experiment on him, unlock some of that extra power and Im gonna play a baddie for a bit lol. (Esentially its my way of keeping up with you guys that are in the training chamber without needing a training montage of my own lol)

Wow, these things always seem longer when im writing them...

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

No one recalls Van Osiku actually arriving at the 82 Tenkaichi Budokai. For that matter, no one recalls him leaving. There are no records of him purchasing any form of transportation to Papaya Island, and there are no witnesses to his departure.

As far as anyone can determine, there are no trails of any kind covering Van Osiku's movement before or after the tournament.

At no point in the competition did he seem capable of personal flight, nor did he appear capable of teleportation. Those few who spoke to him between rounds heard nothing concerning his means of travel; he did not appear to own any sort of vehicle.

It is as though he simply appeared on the island, and disappeared when his battles were complete.

The clouds parted around Van Osiku as he flew across the land, his eyes closed and his arms spread wide. He seemed almost unsteady, his legs curling slightly from time to time as he tried to maintain some sort of course. The man slid around the peaks and left the mountains behind him.

Van now passed along the shore and over the seas, his altitude lowering. One foot trailed on the water for a second, and he seemed in danger of being knocked askew and submerged by the waves. But then he caught hold of himself and increased his level, moving somewhat more smoothly through the air.

In perhaps an hour, he neared his destination, and unconsciously, he began to descend. By the time his feet touched solid earth, he was there.

This was not quite what he had sensed when he had traced out the locations of the balls. Instead of a city, it was one giant building, long since laid to waste. Rust had eaten away what battle had not, and all that was left now were bits of steel poking up into the sky, with a few dessicated rooms marking what once had stood as a challenge to all who saw it.

Fragments of dark memories crossed Van's mind, and he chased them away as he headed into these ruins.

The sensation wasn't immediate when Van entered the main building, and he tilted his head, senses floating around. Then he felt it under his feet, and began to look for a way down.

There was a rotted-open elevator shaft, the elevator long since lost. He stepped into it and floated down, lightly touching a slick, broken floor. The lights were long since gone, but he merely took a drink from his jug and exhaled, one hand open before him.

Small blue flames burst into existence, and he set them around his head before he continued to move.

Water dripped all around him, and he passed between giant heaps of scrap that were once war machines. Bones strewn along the floor marked when men were foolish enough to fight something unstoppable, and again he felt dark pieces of memories floating through his brain. Once again he chased them out, as he had bigger worries.

He tracked it down to one particular side room, which held masses of rotted paper - apparently a storage room. The ball sat on a shelf, the only untouched item in the entire building. Seven stars dotted its surface.

Van Osiku reached out and slid his thumb over the front, then pulled it close, looking into it. He awaited the flashes before his eyes.

They came soon enough.

Under the shadows of the towers, an endless sea of people swarmed, the sound of conversation and the calls of merchants echoing along the street. One man in particular seemed to have a goal in mind. He strode through the streets, his blue robes fluttering as he walked, and his head was down. He appeared to be reading.

"Great Sister Halli comes!" a voice cried, and he raised his head. The man looked just like him.

Everyone on the street turned, almost all at once, to see the crowds parting before three men with dark streaks in their hair. At their center walked a short, frail-looking young woman, wearing a robe of shining black material, her dark hair worn long and draped around her neck.

At the base of her throat, she wore... He couldn't make it out; the vision skipped around.

In a hall made of dark gray stone, an old man sat atop a throne of steel. He wore a long gold cape, and he slumped over as though exhausted.

"And you are sure that they're growing brighter?" he asked.

Before him, a thin young man nodded, his knuckles on his right hand pressed to the floor as he knelt. "Yes, Great Father," he replied. "I have seen them through the Stargazer Lens myself. With each day they grow ever brighter."

"It would appear Ositra's faction is correct, Great Father," a woman in blue robes said now, turning to face the throne. "The prophecies are undeniable. Those lights will shine ever brighter, and then they will bring the end of this world."

The old man sighed, pressing his fingers to his temples. "And what are we supposed to do about it?"

The vision skipped again. Van had no idea who they were, but the old man was undeniably familiar.

Power, endless power, and waiting.

There was nothing here but the power to alter all and everything.

But it was held back, controlled by rules and bound by laws. And none had tapped into it for so long.

Bound by laws and controlled by rules, the power slept, unable to act.

Someday, it knew, it would need to be drawn forth.

The visions ended, and Van Osiku stumbled, catching himself before he could fall into the decay around him. He slid the ball into his other pocket, hand touching the first one he had found.

All he had were questions. It would appear he would need more for the answers.

[Bear]

Hammer

Rothax paused for a moment, then chuckled again.

"KILL me? How exactly do you propose to kill me? Don't tell me you've forgotten what happened earlier?" he questioned Hammer, who remained motionless.

"You couldn't even land a hit on my underling Shimuto! You really think you can touch someone like me?" he continued, pointing at Hammer and then himself. Hammer still did not answer.

"Fine, I suppose I have to teach you, again, when to just stay DOWN!" Rothax finished, his voice growing to a shout as he flung an energy ball at Hammer. Hammer, with clenched teeth, clasped his hands together into one fist and struck the ball with a mighty blow, deflecting it harmlessly into the barren expanse behind him. He returned to his stance and resumed his stare without a word. Rothax smiled in amusement.

"Ah, so the Namek has some tricks up his sleeve after all. Very well, I guess you'll be able to entertain me for a few minutes!" he stated with confidence. Hammer continued to just stare.

Then, he lunged.

Rothax watched as Hammer careened toward him, fist balled and raised behind him as if to strike. Rothax looked confused.

"Are you really attacking me head on? I didn't expect this kind of amateur tactic from a Namek." Rothax taunted, rearing his right forearm across and over his shoulder to prepare for a backhanded swipe. As Hammer reached him and swung, Rothax also swung his arm, connecting perfectly with Hammer's chest.

Or so he thought.

Rothax was surprised as his arm continued its course, passing right through Hammer's body as if it were a ghost. The apparition of Hammer fizzled and dissipated as it continued through Rothax, leaving the bulky alien puzzled. He then smiled.

"HAH! That's it? You're going to kill me with illusions? Looks like you still have alot to le--" Rothax's sentence was cut short as Hammer's attack struck him in his midsection. Rothax let out a grunt, clutching his stomach and spitting a jet of corrosive saliva on the ground. He looked up to see Hammer, still in his original stance as if he had never moved. Rothax looked down at the spit on the ground, then back up at Hammer, then resumed his confident smile.

"I see. A delayed strike attack that uses an illusion to make the foe drop his guard. Very sly, I would expect nothing less from a Namek. But..." Rothax paused as he pointed a menacing finger at Hammer, "You will not catch me off guard again. For this disrespect I will make you feel pain! You will not get off easy with a knockout like you did earlier!" he shouted, clenching his massive fist and beginning to power up. Hammer slid his foot to the right, finally entering his fighting stance.

I will not let you down, father. I will avenge my people!

See lounge for more details

[Blademaster]

Rothax's seond form theme.

Basawe

He was in the dark corridor again. Naked, cold, shameless, Basawe found himself walking towards that doorway once again. He heard the jeers of every other Saiyan he had ever known once again.

But this time, he knew what was coming. Something was driving him this time. And it wasn't his own desire. He came to the door again. His eyes narrowed, and he pushed it open.

The light blinded him, but he knew he wasn't alone. He could feel those beastly eyes glaring down at him. He could sense the furious creature standing before him, ready to crush him like an insect.

"WEAKLING." the voice said again.

"Shut your mouth." Basawe growled.

"YOU CAN PROTECT NOBODY. YOUR LIFE SHOULD BE FORFEIT."

"Shut up." Basawe said again. "On Ninjin I was weak. On this planet I'm mighty. And I'm getting stronger."

"YOU WILL NEVER BE STRONG WITHOUT ME. DISGUSTING, INCOMPLETE MUTANT. EMBARRASSMENT OF NATURE."

Basawe bared his teeth.

"YOU WILL NEVER BE A TRUE SAIYAN. EVEN WITH THE DRAGONBALLS, MY POWER WOULD OVERWHELM YOU."

"Shut... up..." Basawe snarled, making a fist.

"MY POWER WOULD MAKE YOU WHAT YOU HATE. YOUR NEW FRIENDS WOULD ALL DIE BY YOUR HAND."

"SHUT UP!" Basawe screamed, leaping up into the creature's face and charging an energy blast. "JUST SHUT UP!"

The creature's mouth curled into a grin, goading Basawe to strike. The light of the blast concealed its face and filled Basawe's vision...

**************

Basawe opened his eyes and sat up. He was in a bed, in a room with tile floors.

"You're up!"

Basawe looked over towards the door, where Kuji stood.

"Am I... What happened to the Chamber?" Basawe asked.

"You fainted from the gravitational strain. Kura saved you and brought you to the rest area, and Zaito told us, so we removed you. Something about a sickness of yours was mentioned..."

Basawe's expression darkened.

"Where's Kura?" he asked.

"She went back in the chamber. She, Sandor, and Zaito still have a half an hour left."

Basawe briefly considered going back in the chamber, but he quickly realized that if the others were still in the chamber, then that meant Retasu and Shitagi were still outside of it...

"...Kuji, could you please show me where Gamma is being repaired? I need to talk to Shitagi. I'd also like to re-enter the chamber with him and Retasu when it's their turn."

Kuji looked a bit surprised at Basawe's desire to go back in the chamber after it nearly killed him, but he seemed to know better than to argue with a Saiyan.

"Alright." Kuji turned and walked out the door. "Follow me."

Rothax

Rothax faced the Namekian, a frown marring his handsome face. He usually wasn't one accustomed to feeling pain, or patience, let alone fighting fairly. But he was dizzy. Hisanger earlier had indeed burst an actual blood vessel in his head. He could sense the injury. It was nothing serious - a few minutes in the medical bay of his ship and it'd be gone - but it was still reducing the blood flow to his brain. His vision was blurred ever so slightly. He could still see the Namekian more clearly than any human, but to Rothax it was definitely a graphical downgrade.

'Stupid Namek... It's HIS fault for running away that I got so angry and injured myself. I'll have to return the favor, and fast. I have more important things to do than play with my captives...'

"HAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

Rothax screamed and launched himself at Hammer like a jet, fist pulled back. He swung with enough force to snap a skyscraper in half...

FWISH!

His hand went right through, phasing through the Namekian's afterimage. Rothax's eyes widened a split second before Hammer's foot connected with the back of his neck, using Rothax's own momentum to slam him into the ground.

Rothax jumped back to his feet, turning and facing the Namekian. He ran forth and aimed another punch; the Namekian ducked at the last second and uppercutted Rothax, snapping his neck back.

"XING YI QUAN!"

Rothax's eyes bulged as the Namekian's other fist slammed into his exposed stomach. He doubled over, clutching his gut in pain and shaking for a moment...

WHAM!

Hammer's two fists balled together and slammed down on Rothax's skull, smashing his face into the dirt. He leapt into the air and put a finger to his forehead, his veins bulging in concentration.

Rothax coughed up a cloud of dust and dirt, pushing himself back onto his hands and knees.

'That cheap, cowering little insect... I'll rip his arms off and shove them down-'

"SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!"

Rothax's head jerked up.

"Special what-"

KABOOOOM!!!!

Debris flew everywhere, a huge cloud billowing from the point of the impact of Hammer's blast. Silence fell across the battlefield as the dust settled. Hammer's eyes narrowed.

"Good riddance..." he muttered, lowering his arm. A small smile crossed his face.

It quickly vanished when he saw the dull blue glow eminating from the epicenter of the blast. There was Rothax, on one knee, his palm raised and smoking from the blast. His armor was glowing a pale blue; aside from the smoke wisping from his claws, Rothax hadn't even been scratched.

"No way...!" Hammer said. "How did you withstand that?!"

Rothax replied by getting back to his feet and lowering his arm. He glared up at Hammer, the veins on his head throbbing. His eyes glowed a vivid blue.

"...We could have done this the easy way." was all he said.

FWOOOM!!!

Hammer had to shield his eyes as Rothax's fiery, furious aura sprang back to life. Rothax held out his palm and fired a blast of energy at the Namekian; he flew to the side and just barely dodged it... And there, beside him, was Rothax, both arms pulled back. He grimaced at Hammer, a strange gleam in his eyes...

"Now look what I have to do to you."

Rothax pulled back his massive claws and struck. Again and again and again, he struck without mercy. Purple Namekian blood splattered against his armor and his face.

[Bear]

Hammer

And just as quickly as Hammer had taken the upper hand, his advantage disappeared.

SHINGG...SHINGSHINGGG....SHINGGGGGGGGGGG

Rothax's fury had reached full force. Hammer, unable to react quickly enough, was caught in the middle of a ferocious combo attack. Blow after blow struck his body as the alien's powerful claws ripped and slashed at his green flesh. His body was absorbing the attacks, but he could feel his energy draining. Desperate to end the horrible barrage, he felt the ground close beneath him. Lowering his foot to use the ground as a brace, he planted and put all his strength into a counter punch, landing in the middle of Rothax's chest and sending him back into the air. Though he had landed his punch, Rothax remained in control of his body, quickly halting his backward progress and floating gently back to the ground a mere 10 yards from Hammer.

"You might have stopped the attack for now Namek, but you are only prolonging your suffering," Rothax said confidently, "You'd be better off just laying down and dying."

Rothax began to walk toward Hammer again, slowly and ominously in deliberate steps. Hammer, blood dripping from multiple wounds, panted heavily and tried to focus his vision.

Damn it, that took alot out of me. I can't let it end this way though. I can't let a tyrant like this unleash evil on the universe like Frieza did!

Hammer's head jerked up, his body straight up at full height. He clenched both his fists firmly and straightened his arms at a downward angle, a light wind beginning to swirl around him. Rothax stopped and looked at Hammer for a moment, slightly puzzled.

"Hm? What's this?" He thought out loud, watching and waiting for Hammer's next move.

Diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii....

Hammer's voice started low and slowly increased in volume. Rothax continued to watch.

"Oooh, a special attack! I can't wait to see this." Rothax almost sounded excited. The winds swirling around Hammer increased as the energy continued to build. Hammer's eyes shot open, glowing a fiery red.

ZHUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!

Hammer's energy climaxed with a bang, as he let out a roar to unleash the attack. He raised his right fist high above his head, slamming it down into the earth with incredible force. The ground cracked and crumbled around him, creating a shallow crater stretching several yards around him. Beginning lightly and increasing in intensity, the ground began to shake. As the area quaked, Rothax stumbled a moment and had to regain his footing.

"What the hell?!" He exclaimed, taking his focus off Hammer for the briefest of moments. At that very same moment, Hammer jerked upright again, his hands raised high above his head.

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" Hammer let out an equally earth shaking bellow, as his attack began to culminate.

Without warning, a massive wave of energy shot out of the ground at Rothax's feet. Not being able to sense its approach, Rothax was unprepared and caught the blow directly in the midsection.

"OOMPH!" he grunted, bending slightly only to catch the next waves in the face.

Blast after blast struck Rothax as massive chunks of earth and stone burst and disintegrated around him. As the final waves of energy crashed into him, Rothax stumbled backward and fell to the ground in a cloud of dust. Hammer, having completed his attack, relaxed again into his battle stance. He was uneasy though, as he could sense Rothax stirring underneath the rubble. He then felt energy--horrible energy--drastically beginning to rise. The earth began to shake again, this time much more violently than during Hammer's Di Zhu attack. A rumble was heard from below, gradually growing into a blood-curdling roar. In a monstrous blast of energy, huge boulders and tons of dirt flew in all directions as if a meteor had landed. Hammer crossed his arms in front of his face to shield himself from the debris. As the blast subsided and the dust began to clear, Hammer could see Rothax in the middle of the crater, with barely a scratch on him.

"WHAT!? NO WAY!" Hammer shouted, for what he saw in that crater was a horror beyond imagination.

I deliberately left it ambiguous so Blade could decide what to do with Rothax next. If he wants to go to his next form now he can, or he can wait and do something else with the situation. I wanted to extend the battle a bit longer to give the other subplots more time to develop. Now let's all get posting!

[Master Rudy]

Help is on the way James ^_~

Shitagi Summers
------
With both my mother and Retasu currently working to fix Gamma I felt that a third person would simply be getting in the way. Not only that but my attention was currently elsewhere. For reasons that I myself couldn't understand Hammer had gone back down below to face Rothax. What is he thinking?! I thought to myself. I was just barely able to hold my own against that animal's first form. How could Hammer rush down there to a certain death? I wished I could do something to help him but I knew that in my current state that I'd be just another victim without serious training. The only thing I could do at the moment was stand on the edge of the Lookout and stare off into the distance as I watched Rothax's power level floating around the 20,000 mark. Hammer's power level went up and down a few times and several big attacks lit up the sky in the distance and read fairly high on my scouter. However ultimately his own power level started to take a horrible drop and suggested that if he wasn't already close to death that he would be very soon.

"It's horrible isn't it?" I heard someone behind me say. Turning around I saw Basawe standing there. Managing a weak smile I told him "Well it's good to see you back on your feet. I heard minor details about your mishap in the time chamber. Are you ok?" For a brief moment he looked like he didn't want to talk about it before finally asking "What did you hear?" Unsure of where he was going with it I said "Not too much. All I know is that you went a bit too far out and away from the rest area. From my understanding the gravity gets much worse the deeper inside you go." Looking at Basawe's face I could get the sense that there was more to it than that. However now didn't seem like the time to push the matter. Trying to get his mind off the fact that he pushed himself too hard I said "In any case they've been inside of there for about half an hour. If they decide to go for the full hour then that leaves them with about 30 minutes or so left. Once they come out I was going to go inside with Retasu. As for the third person I was hoping that Hammer would have been able to join us but......." I trailed off not wanting to finish that sentence. While I was hopeful we'd somehow get him out of there it was starting to look pretty grim for him.

Pushing those thoughts out of my mind I attempted to focus on the current situation. Just as I was about to extend the invitation for Basawe to join us in the time chamber however my scouter started to beep. Looking back out in the distance I saw the sky turning an ugly color as Rothax's power level started to climb again. Currently he was reading as 22,000 and rising while Hammer was at a very dangerously low 953. Shit......this is going to be it I guess. Isn't there anything we can do for him? Almost on cue however my mom walked up to us. "He shouldn't have gone off alone like that" she said stating the obvious thing on all our minds. "Even so I'm not going to let him die. I think it's about time I see exactly what we're up against." Before I could protest on the matter she had her jacket off and on the ground. However once again my mom was proving that she was full of surprises. Instead of landing gently on the floor of the Lookout her jacket landed with a thud and cracked some of the tiles even. Weighted clothing? I thought to myself as I reached for my scouter. I know mom used to be a fighter herself but this doesn't seem normal. It's almost like she's a different person today. As my scouter scanned for her power level I managed to get my own little shock. Without weights her power level shot up to 3,218! And she wasn't even fully powered up yet! Looking at me as she raised her fingers to her head she said "Don't worry......I'm coming back without a scratch."

With that she was gone.......

------
Victoria Son Summers
------
As I arrived at the battle site it took everything I had not to be caught off guard by the sight of this alien named Rothax. Without question he was easily one of the ugliest things I had ever laid eyes on. At the moment I was standing behind him while he faced the Namekian. From the looks of things he seemed ready to end this. However I saw that he was powering up out of pure rage. Shitagi was right. He gets careless when he's angry. He hasn't even noticed me yet! Not wasting a single moment I let my power level shoot up in an instant as I spread my arms out to power up my own attack.

"Kaio-Ken times three......."

With the sudden surge in my power level as well as the sound of my voice Rothax had stopped charging his own attack and focused on me fully. Before he could figure out what was happening I brought my hands together in front of me and let him have everything I could throw at him.

"FINAL FLASH!!!"

The blinding beam shot out quickly at Rothax. I knew that this attack would do one of two things: either it would end the threat to the Earth or it would help me gauge exactly how strong this son of a bitch really was. I was able to see well enough to see that my attack did not continue off into the distance. To my horror the energy was gathering where Rothax stood. Not wanting to risk using anymore energy I broke off the attack and dropped out of my Kaio-Ken form. A few seconds later the gather energy was just one massive ball where Rothax once stood. At first it seemed to be almost floating there but then slowly the ball started to rise up into the air. Before I knew it he was standing right there holding the very energy from my own attack above his head. Despite my shock and fear over the situation I refused to let it show on my face. As for Rothax he simply started to chuckle as he spoke. "You poor dear!" he said with his voice dripping sarcasm. "I believe this is yours? No worries......LET ME RETURN IT TO YOU!"

With that he threw the gathered ki right back at me. There was no doubt that if this hit me it'd be all over. However I had the element of surprise on my side as I focused on Rothax's ki signature. I simply stood there and let the attack get dangerously close before raising my fingers to my head and using the Instant Transmission. As I appeared behind this monster I let my ki flare back up. Now knowing full well of what he was capable of I pushed myself to the absolute limit and did something that I knew I shouldn't have.

"KAIO-KEN TIMES FOUR!!!"
"WHAT?! How did you......"

Before Rothax could even finish asking the question or turn around I made my move. Spinning around I aimed a kick right at his head and sent him flying off into the distance. I knew I wouldn't win this fight so I wasted no time. With the speed boost my Kaio-Ken granted me I quickly flew to the Namekian and placed my right hand on his arm. "Who......who are y....you?" he asked me weakly. Trying to focus back on the ki of someone at the Lookout before I ran out of energy I told him "I'm a friend. You should have known better than to come back here. But it'll be ok. We're getting the hell out of here." Suddenly off in the distance I felt Rothax's power flare back up as he screamed "YOU BBBIIIITTTTTCCCHHHHH!!!!" Looking in the direction I sent him flying in I saw him rushing full force right back at us. "I'm going to enjoy stringing you up by your own tail you fucking monkey!" he shouted as the distance between us dwindled. At the last possible moment I felt Shitagi's ki signature flare up slightly. Good thinking son! It wouldn't be enough to give away where we were but it would be enough to help me focus on it.

As I finally locked onto it with a smirk I told Rothax "Yeah.......good luck with that." Before I knew it I was back up on Kami's Lookout. It wasn't a moment too soon because a second later my Kaio-Ken dropped from overuse. "MOM!" my son shouted as he grabbed me in an attempt to keep me from hitting the ground hard. Trying to catch my breath I managed to laugh a bit and say "I told you......not a scratch!" Shitagi looked back at Basawe and told him "Find Mr. Popo! See if he's got an Senzu Beans left for Hammer!" As he ran off I managed to catch my breath enough to at least prop myself up on my own. Shitagi sat near me and with a grim look asked the question I knew he was dreading the answer to.

"So......how bad is it?"

Taking a few more deep breaths I gave him the bad news. "Well......I'm sure you saw my power level on your scouter. He.....he deflected a Kaio-Ken assisted Final Flash right back at me. I can match him at.....Kaio-Ken times four but it would be just like your battle. If he could deflect my attack like that then I fear that he's not even using his.....full power. My best guess is that he's going to top out at about 28 or 29,000 give or take." I could see the fear in the eyes of my son at that news. "What are we going to do then?" he asked me. As I slowly managed to stand back up and grab my jacket I said "I've got to finish repairing Gamma. When the others are out of the time chamber they will need to do the best they can to slow him down and keep him busy. Once Gamma is ready the two of us should be able to join them. Even so it won't be enough. Once Hammer is recovered you, him, Retasu and Basawe should get in the time chamber. Everyone else went for an hour. However I'm afraid that if we're going to have any shot at all that the four of you are going to need to push for two hours in there." I could see on my son's face how uncertain he was over that. "I've heard the stories mom. I don't know if we can......" Putting my hand up to stop him from speaking I said "It's not a matter of not knowing if you can. You guys have to do this. No matter how painful it gets you need to push for as much time as possible. Hell if we had the time I'd tell you to go for even more. Two hours Shitagi. No more and no less. Otherwise we may not stand a chance......."
-------

Ok......for Shitagi he doesn't know the full extent of Basawe's illness and merely thinks he just went a little too far out and got overpowered by the gravity. I imagine that Basawe wouldn't want to talk about it for fear of being seen as a weakling by yet another Saiyan. However if that's the case he'd be forgetting that Shitagi is an Earth raise Human/Saiyan hybrid and that he would not even dare to consider him weak. In fact if you want my opinion I'd say the Saiyan doctors on Planet Vegeta simply do nothing but patch up injuries since their immune system has almost no weaknesses. If Blade wants to go this route then I'd say that any Saiyan doctors raised on Earth may actually be able to get to the bottom of his disease ^_~

To put the mini battle in perspective here's a quick rundown. Rothax was caught off guard but managed to deflect a Final Flash back at Victoria despite the assistance from Kaio-Ken x3. Had she gone with x4 it may have actually done damage to him but it would have left her defenseless/drained and would have added both her and Hammer to the casuality list. And as we all know the villian does not simply die that fast

In regards to the time chamber I simply can't see the first group being able to match Rothax's max power level of 30,000+ after only an hour. Even if they could get close to it there's the added matter of Shimuto floating around. I personally think that if the two of them got together that it'll be all over. That's why I had Victoria tell Shitagi that his group needs at least two hours. It'll be like the arc of the Cell Saga where Vegeta and Trunks fought Cell while Goku and Gohan stayed inside the HTC for a whole day. They may be able to do some damage but ultimately the first group is eventually going to get picked apart before the second group rejoins them. This is of course assuming it's all straight fighting. There's still the matter of the Dragon Balls, Retasu's own agenda, Shimuto not being involved as of late, Gav being missing, Van on his own, ect.

Finally while Victoria was off saving Hammer and Shitagi and Basawe were observing on their scouters something else happened. A certain elite Saiyan was left alone with a certain Android........ ^_~

[Heald]

Zaito Zhin

[20 Times Earth's Gravity]

It was the Eighth day of their training in the Chamber. Zaito stood there panting, large beads of sweat rolling down his forehead. He had gotten used to the ten times Earth's gravity, but, despite what happened to Basawe, he had ventured slightly further out. The two others were sleeping and he didn't want to train too close, lest he wake them.

He stood up straight, took in a deep breath and began punching the air, building up speed and strength with each punch. It must've been at least twenty times Earth's gravity where he was, but it was all building up his strength; he could definitely feel he was much faster and stronger in the rest area, which was the equivalent of Earth's gravity.

He then drew in an even larger breath and began punching and kicking as strong and as fast as possible. Over time, his strikes began to blur as they became faster, his body adjusting to the gravity.

After nearly two hours of this he fell to his knees, then onto his palms, panting deeply as large beads of sweat rolled down his face, splashing on the floor.

This training...it is unlike anything I have ever done...and yet I don't know whether I'll be strong enough...

His vision began to blur, he could feel the training have an effect on his body. The thinner air, the stronger gravity, it was all taking his toll. He was gasping for air, watching as he started to feel more dizzy and light-headed. He summoned the strength to lift his head up and as he did, he looked into the emptiness. He could see nothing but white, endless miles of nothingness. He then began to see the outlines of two people, a man and a boy. Slowly they came into form, albeit transparent. He then recognised them: one was his sensei, and the boy was himself when he was younger. Like he was now, the boy was on his hands and knees, panting. He also had a massive boulder tied onto his back.

[Memories]

"Sensei...this training...I cannot carry this boulder any more," the younger Zaito complained to his master. His sensei tutted and slammed a staff onto the ground.
"Cannot...no, Zaito, I know full well you can carry it back up the mountain. But if you do not, then there is no point for you returning to the temple."
"But it is too heavy! It will take me forever!"
His master turned his back on his student and began to slowly make his way back up the mountain to the temple.
"It does not matter how slowly you go, Zaito, as long as you do not stop."
As the boy watched his master walk up the path, he struggled to his feet, clenching his hands around the ropes tied to his body and, step by step, he began to follow.

The vision disappeared, leaving Zaito staring into nothingness. He gasped, then put on foot flat on the ground, lifting himself up onto the other, standing up in the intense gravity.

I must train harder. Those brutes who near levelled West City...that monster Rothax who destroyed it...and Hammer, who left to almost certain death...I cannot continue to stand idly by...I need to get strong!

He clenched his fist and began to power-up. He was going to try a technique that he had wanted to try ever since entering.

[The Power of Wind]

"Bikokaze!" he grunted loudly, and a miniature tempest enveloped him. His body was radiating both his own energy and summoning a storm of wind around him. He breathed out slowly, and as he did, the wind swept around him at gale force pace and in an instant he had disappeared.

He began blinking in and out of sight, each time striking a kick or a punch into the air, only ever appearing for a fraction of a second. With renewed strength, he was covering more ground and, now refocused on his goal, was determined to prove he was strong enough to defend this planet.

[Blademaster]

I got a lot to cover. So maybe I can fill in that timeframe gap now. Here goes...

Rothax

Rothax stepped out of the crater, to the Namekian's utter shock and horror. He brushed off his dirt-spattered armor and walked forward, towards his petrified quarry.

"You know," he finally said, "it's not often that I cool off in the middle of a fight like this. Maybe I'm impressed. Or maybe I'm SO angry that I've just come full circle. Either way, you have a bit more strength than I expected. And I have a lot of stress that needs burning off."

The Namekian tried to look tough, but the slight backward shift in his stance told Rothax all he needed to know.

"So, I tell you what: You win." Rothax said, his claws twisting sideways, into new shapes resembling black shears. "You want to spar a little before I tear your limbs off and drag you back to my ship? Fine, let's go!"

Rothax vanished into midair and reappeared behind the Namekian, but the green-skinned alien seemed to be excepting this. He turned and raised his arms to block, just before Rothax's clawed foot smashed into his chest. The Namekian skidded back, but quickly dodged to the side and rocketed into the air.

"I agreed to spar," Rothax growled, zooming after him, "not to play tag!"

WHAM!

Rothax's face slammed into Hammer's elbow. The Namekian has stopped in midflight and thrust back into an empi that sent Rothax tumbling to the ground on all fours.

"You're it." Hammer said coldly.

Rothax wiped his mouth and stood back up, his anger building again.

"Stupid green bug..." he snarled.

"Sir, do you require assistance?"

Rothax's eyes widened as he turned around. Standing not 30 feet from him was Shimuto, his normally expressionless face smiling ever so slightly.

And his normally empty hand clutching a fiery colored ball with 6 stars inside of it...

"A... A Dragonball." Rothax said, his voice cracking from sheer joy. He walked towards his second-in-command, grinning from ear to ear. "Shimuto, your timing is perfect. This was just what I wanted."

"I am pleased that you are pleased, sir." Shimuto replied, handing the sphere to his benefactor.

"Hey!" Hammer barked, landing behind the alien duo. "Weren't we in the middle of a figh-"

BOOMF!

And Hammer was rendered silent, an energy blast from Rothax's fingertip sending him rolling across the barren battlefield like a log.

"Didn't your mother ever teach you not to interrupt other people's conversations?" Rothax snapped. "Oh, wait, I guess she didn't. Considering you don't have one!"

As Rothax chuckled over his callous joke, Shimuto took a closer look at his boss's enemy.

'I remember him...' Shimuto thought, grinning wickedly. 'Namekians. The most delicious blood this planet has to offer. So far, anyway.'

"Shimuto." Rothax said, noticing his associate's odd expression. "Is something troubling you?"

Shimuto blinked. "No sir."

"Then resume your search. The Namekian is mine."

Shimuto frowned. "As you say, sir." He lifted into the air, making brief eye contact with the Namekian. He grinned and licked his lips, then turned and sped off towards the next Dragonball energy source he knew of.

"It figures that that psycho was a friend of yours." Hammer spat.

"Shut up." Rothax replied. "Personal habits aside, he's one of the few confident men on my ship.

"Captain, this is Tennan! We have a situation!"

"What was that?" Hammer said, his ears twitching.

"One of my INcompetent men." Rothax growled, reaching for his radio. "I really am sorry our fight keeps getting interrupted. One moment." He pressed the button. "This is Rothax. And this had better be important."

"Sir, it's that strange human we have captive here on the ship. He's dead."

"WHAT!?"

"He's dead, sir, and not just that - his body is already decomposing, and at an accelerated rate like nothing our doctors have ever seen! He went from a grey corpse to a near-mummified state in minutes!"

"Get him off the ship then!" Rothax yelled. "He's useless to us now!"

"Sounds like your evil plans aren't going so well." Hammer stated, his patience with Rothax vanishing. "Now hang up the phone and come on!"

"SILENCE!" Rothax bellowed, his aura firing up around him again.

'I've lost two Dragonballs AND a hostage.' he thought, teeth gritted as the wind around him picked up. 'What else could possibly go wrong toda-'

"KAIO-KEN TIMES THREE!!!"

Rothax turned around...

"FINAL FLAAAAAASH!!!"

...And gold light filled his vision. He instinctively held out his hands, a massive wave of energy slamming into them and forcing Rothax yards back... A hundred feet. Two hundred. Two fifty. He finally dug his heels in enough to slow down and reflect the blast...

"KAIO-KEN TIMES FOUR!!!"

...Only to get kicked clear PAST it by the woman who'd launched it. It flew off harmlessly into the sky; Rothax yelled in fury as he charged back at her and the Namekian.

FWISH!

But they were gone...

"OH GOD DAMN IT!!!" Rothax roared, slamming his fists into the ground where the two had been seconds earlier. "AGAIN, THEY ESCAPED AGAIN!!! NO HOSTAGE, NO NAMEKIANS, NO DRAG...on..."

He paused, looking down at the Dragonball Shimuto has given him. It was still clutched in his hand.

"Well... ONE Dragonball." he growled.

"Make that two, sir..."

Rothax looked up. In front of him were Blaque and Whyte, each holding something. The larger of the duo held another human over his shoulder. The smaller held a Dragonball embalmed with a single star.

Rothax took a deep breath as he was handed the Dragonball.

"Well, I must say I'm impressed." he admitted. "I didn't think you two weirdos were that trustworthy. Usually when I employ two-man teams they have poor track records..." His mind wandered back to the Kwalis. They'd be serving out their punishment on a barren planet somewhere before the day was over. Maybe this planet's moon...

"We aim to please, master." Whyte said with a bow.

"What is the human for?" Rothax demanded.

"He was guarding the Dragonball, sir." Blaque explained. "He was no match for us, but his power is surprisingly high. We believe that that power may be useful for our cause."

Rothax paused for a moment, pondering this.

"Tennan." he said into his radio after a moment. "Blaque and Whyte are bringing a NEW hostage to the ship. I want this one monitored constantly. I'LL monitor him if I must."

"I'll arrange a new holding area, sir. But what about the Dragonballs?"

"I have two now. You better have been able to find the others by now."

"Oddly, I've found two of them in the same area, sir. They're far to the southwest."

"How many men are left on the ship?"

"Casualties of Veia, Loma, and Geno Squads aside, there's still 18 crew members left, yourself included."

Rothax blinked. "What happened to Loma Squad and Geno Squad?

The response he got was particularly sheepish this time.

"They... were vaporized in your attack on the city earlier, sir."

Rothax paused, then held his head in his hand.

"A pity... But they can be mourned later. Right now, I'm changing my plans. Have the Kwalis been reassembled yet?"

"Yes sir, they're fighting-fit again."

"Excellent. Then Blaque, Whyte, and myself are returning to the ship. The two Dragonballs you've discovered to the southwest, send Luti Squad to retrieve. Once they've departed, stop your search for the Dragonballs."

Blaque and Whyte looked surprised by this; even Tennan stopped dead back on the ship.

"...Sir?"

"You heard me. Once Luti has departed, turn your focus to the highest power level concetration on this planet outside of my forces. When you find it, send the Kwalis to DESTROY it."

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

Van Osiku's handwriting exists in the form of numerous small notes he has written for various purposes, typically IOUs or promissory notes on borrowing items from others. Enough survive for extensive handwriting analysis.

What they reveal about his personality is almost certainly misleading, but their presence allows enough of a sample to determine whether or not any given document is really a Van Osiku creation.

Samples of Van Osiku's writing date back for almost a century, but the single most interesting item is a few pages found on a planet with no other features of interest.

The paper chemically dates as being far older than any other sample, close to three hundred years old. The language is unknown, and attempts to find any "Rosetta Stones" or living native speakers have proven fruitless.

But even though it is in an unrecognizable script, the handwriting is unmistakably Van Osiku's.

The daylight made Van Osiku squint as he left the military ruins. He blinked the glare out of his eyes, dusting off the satchel he'd found in the storage room - one of the few items that hadn't gotten covered in grime or mold over the years. Inside it was both of the strange spheres.

He laid a hand on the bag, and for a moment he could see the city of towers. Lifting his hand, he watched it fade, and let out a sigh.

For a moment, Van looked around, shutting his eyes and just sensing the energy. It took a moment to filter out the signals from the satchel, but soon he had the lock he needed. His face turned back and forth, seeking out the same energy in the spheres on his hip.

Two came from his left, in very close proximity... but they were intermingled with power levels that gave him a chill on some greater level. It would be suicidal to pursue them, and so he decided not to do so.

To his right, on the other hand, he could dimly sense the one sphere he could not previously pinpoint - apparently, with each one he acquired, it became easier to sense the others. He concentrated harder, his brow furrowing, and sensed... emptiness, on all sides. Unbroken expanses of empty space surrounded the energy.

Van concentrated harder still, sweat forming on his temples, his face twitching. Now he could sense tiny signs of life, barely recognizable as power...

His eyes opened, and Van shook his head, chuckling. It was in the ocean.

"Of course," he muttered, even as he began to rise off the ground. "It would have to be hard to get..."

Without much thought, for there wasn't much he could do at this point, Van Osiku began to fly towards the signature, his feet just over the water as he passed. The tip of his toe broke the waves as he moved, and he managed to keep his eyes open this time.

So when he reached the energy signature, a spot in the sea indistinguishable from any other, he was able to just get out of the way of the incoming vehicle. It was strange to look at - more like a flying platform than any actual vehicle he'd seen. It hovered above the sea, and on it...

On it stood eight very unusual-looking people. They were human-shaped, but - whether it was their skin, their eyes, or their tendency to twitch every few seconds - it was obvious they weren't actual humans. They all wore strange uniforms, which all but screamed "mercenary". All eight stared at him as he hovered over the water, and he stared back.

"Who's this guy?" one of them asked.

"No idea," said another one as he examined a beeping device in his hand. He looked up at Van, and then back to the others. "But whoever he is, he's got two Dragon Balls on him!"

"You kidding me?"

"Why the hell would I kid? The scanner's going insane just pointing at him!"

Several of the creatures convened, studying the device, and Van raised an eyebrow. Dragon... Balls? he thought. Unconsciously, he looked to the satchel.

When he looked back up, the creatures had turned to stare at him again. "Hand over the Dragon Balls immediately," the one in charge said.

"If you mean the orange spheres..." Van began, and then he paused, thinking to himself. These must be important, he thought. If I refuse, they will likely get violent. And I cannot afford to let these out of my possession. "I cannot turn them over." He descended, his feet gently settling on the water. He didn't trust his mid-air combat skills, as he hadn't even known he could fly until a moment before. His ki flared up under his feet, and to little surprise, he found the water to be as firm as soil to him.

En masse, five of the soldiers leapt from the platform and landed on the sea, repeating the same trick. They fanned out around him, and then three came at him from separate directions.

One arm swung up, and Van blocked the first strike coming for his head. Then he twisted, just getting out of the way of another's foot, before catching the third's fist to his side. He stumbled, and the fourth dove in for an armbar. It connected, and Van skipped across the ocean, spouts of water marking his impact sites.

Flipping upright, Van made himself focus and took a step back. Then he charged in, threw himself in the center of the soldiers, and spun around on his axis, drawing a circle on the ocean's surface. He forced ki out of his palms, and for a second the circle glowed.

A massive wall of energy burst out of the sea, and it pushed the water out in a giant shockwave, a tidal circle throwing everyone in a wide arc around him.

Van blinked, rubbed his eyes and blinked again. How the hell did I just do that? he wondered. The Shock Wall is an old trick of mine, but it's never like that!

As the water flowed away, his adversaries regrouped, one of them flicking the water out of his eyes. "Don't let him concentrate!" he yelled. "If they can't focus, they can't use their ki!"

The soldiers rushed him again, and Van was on his feet, fists and knees flying all around him. He felt his arm crack as a foot slammed his arm into his side, and he could barely throw out a counterstrike, doubling that soldier over. Another struck him in the spine, and he stumbled directly into a kick to the throat. He choked, hands going up instinctively, and a jumpkick sent him into the water, a column of water marking his point of impact.

He foundered for a moment, but then flew out of the ocean, water dripping from his clothes. His feet touched the surface again, and he slowly regained himself, catching his breath. His hands glowed, and the next soldier that charged him got a firm palm thrust to the chest.

At that point, his target... exploded. Several splashes marked where bits of the unfortunate landed in the water, and a small blood slick floated in front of Van.

One of the soldiers still on the vehicle focused an eyepiece on Van, confusion in his voice as he said, "The hell... His power level just keeps going up and down. I can't put a lock on it!"

"What's the upper level?" another asked.

"Let's see... Looks like 3,500. But he rarely touches that." Removing the eyepiece, he yelled, "Don't be fooled! He can't repeat that! Kill him and take those Dragon Balls! Do it for Kozor!"

The four survivors rushed Van, who was looking at his hands. That... that wasn't a Pulse... he thought. What's happening to me?

And then he was buried under a succession of strikes. Fists and feet battered him, and every time he reached out a hand to push them away, it was struck down. Water sprayed out as he slid along the surface, propelled by impact back and forth. All he could do was cling to the satchel.

Finally, bruised and battered, Van accepted that he couldn't get out. He began to unsling the satchel...

And a voice, deep and quiet, asked, Will you let me take over?

Who... are you?

I don't know. All I know is that I can solve this.

Van silently consented.

The ocean parted. A massive pillar of seawater erupted into the sky, slowly spreading outward, and the soldiers found themselves hurled out, as though caught in a hurricane. Fish flew across the surface, and massive waves launched out, scouring the surface. The vehicle expediently moved a good hundred yards out.

As the pillar began to lower, Van stood atop it, his eyes burning white and his hair stained with dark streaks; his clothes were completely dry. His hands shone, and even as the soldiers began to get their bearings, he vanished, leaving only a blur and a small line of light.

Then he touched one on the back of the neck. Before anything happened, he moved, pulling another from under the water by his face. He was across the sea a second later, backhanding one who was reaching for a weapon on his hip, and a heartbeat after that he was breaking the hand of the last one.

Then Van was back atop the descending pillar, and his hands raised for just a moment before they fell again.

When his hands reached his hips, all four of his targets exploded, blood and organs scattering across the water's surface.

Van's gaze turned to the floating vehicle, and he pointed one arm towards it. Ki formed across his fingertips, and he stared for a second, before kneeling and flicking the water towards it.

The water kept rolling, curling upwards, growing ever larger by the second. Eventually it formed a tidal wave, easily twenty feet high at the crest. It engulfed the hovering platform, and then slammed back into the ocean's surface, a sound like thunder roaring across the water.

Only one of the aliens who had led the attack survived. He broke the surface in time to see Van reach down and pull the ocean open like it was a paper bag, a hollow tunnel forming in the water. Van descended into it, and a few moments later, he rose out of the water, holding a small orange sphere in one hand. On its surface, there shone five stars.

And then he was gone, leaving one rather disturbed survivor in his wake.

Perhaps three minutes after the battle on the ocean's surface, Van Osiku came in for a landing on a small, fairly unremarkable island, just like so many others throughout the southern oceans. He settled on the ground, opened his satchel, and placed the sphere along its brothers.

Then he closed the satchel, blinked, and passed out, thudding into the sand.
----
And that, ladies and gentlemen, was D-Trance Van. He has even less clue than you do where it just came from.

[Heald]

I'm going to write Sandor out now. If Elf wants her back in, the onus is on him.

Zaito Zhin

[Final Fight]

"Ready?"

"Ready."

Zaito and Kura were staring at each other, standing somewhere between the rest area and the fifty-times gravity area, pretty deep into the chamber and far enough that their battle would not destroy the rest area.

Kura quickly pressed both hands together and fired a quick but powerful ball of energy towards Zaito. Zaito leapt up, just in time to dodge the attack, but punching it towards the ground, causing it to explode. He burst from the explosion cloud and prepared to punch Kura, who was also readying a fist. As he dived over her, their fists connected and with his other hand he grabbed Kura's wrist and landed, turning her around. Letting go of her wrist, his leg began to glow with energy and he swung it around. Kura backflipped over the leg, but the energy it left in its wake was like a miniature tempest, blowing her away like a gale.

Kura flew up into the air, raising her arms to deflect the wind and bracing herself. She snarled and stared at the advancing Zaito and as Zaito came up for a high fist, she outmanoeuvred him and quickly jabbed him in the gut, causing him to double over. She then unleashed a flurry of blows that Zaito did his best to avoid, but mostly had to raise his arms in order to defend himself. She finished the flurry with a powerful punch that connected with his raised forearms, sending him flying back several yards. He lowered his arms, only to see Kura powering up an energy attack.
"Oh sh-" he muttered and she fired a beam of intense blinding energy. When she finished her attack, Zaito was nowhere to be seen.

"Bikokaze!"he yelled, appearing out of nowhere on Kura's flank, surprising her with a flying fist. Though surprised, she managed to turn around to deflect the punch, but was very much on the back foot as Zaito was now the one dealing the blows, although she was finding it easier to dodge them. She grabbed his wrist during one of his punches and swung him around, letting ago and preparing a powerful fist. Zaito quickly pressed both hands together, making a hand sign.
"Bikokaze!"he yelled, just as Kura connected with the punch, and even though it appeared to make contact, all that was left was an after-image that quickly dissipated. She looked everywhere in her immediate field of view but couldn't see the human warrior.

"Wind Shot!"Zaito announced. Kura turned her neck to see that Zaito had reappeared right behind her with a single arm outstretched, barely touching her back. It began to glow and whistle as wind surged around it.
"You s-" she uttered but the rest was not heard as a powerful, yet invisible, blast of wind directed squarely at her back sent her flying. Zaito landed and watched her regain control. She then raised her arms up and growled.
"Okay, enough games human, time to step it up."

She summoned a tremendous amount of energy in a matter of seconds and fired it at Zaito. The beam came in so quickly he had no idea to avoid it, instead outstretching his arms in an attempt to catch it. He braced himself and the beam struck his hands at lightning speed, nearly crushing him. His legs nearly buckled under the power, but he gathered the strength and held fast, yet knew he couldn't keep this up. He summoned his strength and, yelling as he pumped up his arms, he slammed the beam down against the ground near him. He had enough time to gasp for a breath of air, but as he turned around, the only thing he saw was a fist connected squarely on the side of his face, sending him flying across the ground. He quickly got on all fours and, as he turned his head, saw Kura again launching at him. With not enough time to recover, he turned onto his back and raised his forearms, blocking Kura's punch. Both of their auras began to flare as they struggled against each other.

"Am I too strong for you, human?" she yelled as her power began to rise and her fist dug further into his arms.
"Kura, the enemy is out there! What are you trying to prove?" he replied anxiously, genuinely feeling the threat of an angry Saiyan imminently bearing down on him with all her furious power.
"My strength will get me my Dragonballs, and with them I can get back what's mine!"
Zaito was about to deliver a kick in an attempt to dislodge her, when another voice spoke.

"Zaito, Kura, your time is up, and you are needed urgently."
They both powered down, but remained in the same position. They looked around; although it was Kuji's voice, he was nowhere to be seen.
"I am at the rest area, communicating telepathically. I'm afraid our old friends the Kwalis are back."
Both Kura and Zaito needed no time to process this information; they simply stared each other in the eye, and then a slow smile graced each of their faces. Kura leapt up over Zaito and landed on her feet, walking towards the rest area. Zaito leapt up as well and began to follow her.
"Lucky for you, looks like I get to kill something else instead of you," she dryly chuckled. Zaito smirked.
"Yeah, it'd be good to see how my new power compares to those clowns now."

---

Sorry if I portrayed Kura too out-of-character Kuro, PM me if you feel I should edit something.

[Kuro Espeon]

Backing up just a bit to get a final (substantial) HTC Kura post in.

Heald: You got her close enough. Thanks for asking.

Kura:

After the ordeal with Basawe had been resolved and Kura had given herself a short time to rest, she quickly returned to the outer depths of the Chamber to continue her training. She knew they didn’t have much time left before their time would be up and the other group would come in. A few days at most. She had already increased her power level dramatically. She couldn’t tell what it was exactly without a scanner, but she knew that training the harsh environment of the HTC had pushed her far beyond her previous limits, even just in 2 ½ weeks. She couldn’t imagine what a whole year would be like…

Through a flurry of punches and kicks, Kura began to question herself. What was she really doing here? What was her real goal? Was it just about Kabu, or was it something else entirely that was driving her now? It wasn’t pride. No, that emotion was lost to her when she cut her ties to her Saiyan heritage. Nor was it affection, for her new-found comrades or for this planet. She had decided long ago to fight for herself alone. So she wouldn’t have to deal with that kind of guilt again… But was that really what she wanted?

The remaining time continued to tick away and Kura’s training continuously without breaking. However, by the time there was only about a day remaining, she could feel her sanity waning. As if calling to her from another world entirely, a mysterious voice broke through the silence of the chamber.

‘Kura…’

Kura spun around several times, trying to locate the source of the voice.

‘Kura…’ It called again. It sounded so familiar, so warm. She finally saw something out of the corner of her eye, a figure slightly shrouded in mist. As the mist began to clear and the figure came into better view, her heart giving a small, hopeful leap. “K…Kabu?”

However, as she turned to face the smiling visage, it quickly faded from her view and was replaced by another familiar form - A tall, muscular Saiyan in full armor, his ragged black hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. His face was set in a sneer and his eyes full of avarice. The most recognizable feature, however, was a long, jagged scar that stretched from the bottom of his right eye, across the bridge of the nose and down the left cheek.

“You!” She cried out, a old flame of rage from the past bursting to life within her.
“What’s the matter, Kura? Feeling…helpless?”
“Spinak!” she growled, her fists clenched and her muscles twitching instinctively. “I’ll make you pay for what you’ve done!” She launched herself forward, flying at the form of Spinak with murderous intent; but when she reached him, he simply disappeared and her fist hit nothing but air. He reappeared behind her, levitating several feet in the air.
“And how are you going to do that? You couldn’t even protect your own husband. How could you possibly defeat me if you’re that weak?”
“Shut up!” Kura spun around and fired a blast of energy straight at Spinak, but once again the phantom disappeared and reappeared elsewhere.
“Just face it, my dear. You can never win! You’re too afraid of your own weakness to succeed! You’re of no help, no consequence. You can’t protect anyone, not even yourself!”
“I said… SHUT UP!” Kura leapt into the air, arching her back and bringing her arms back in preparation for another attack. The gathered energy between her hands swirled in a melancholy blue. “Aishou-ken!!”

This time the attack connected. The vision of Spinak appeared to evaporate and dissolve into thin air, this time not coming back. Breathing heavily, Kura touched down and lowered her arms. She still stood on her guard for a good minute to make sure the phantom wasn’t going to appear again. So when a light tap came on her shoulder she instinctively spun around with her fist prepared to attack. Zaito Zhin managed to lean back just in time to avoid the Saiyan’s punch, stumbling back in surprise.
“Whoa! Hey!”
Kura paused, taking a moment to realize who it was.
“Oh, it’s you, Zaito…”
“Er, sorry I startled you. I just wanted to ask if you wanted to spar, seeing as we have less than a day left in here. I figured it would be a good way for the two of us to test how hard we’ve trained.”
Kura grinned. “I suppose. Though I should probably go easy on you. Wouldn’t want you to die before we even face Rothax.”
“Heh. Sure thing.”

****A short while later****

"Am I too strong for you, human?" Kura yelled, her arms digging into Zaito’s as her power level subsequently rose.
"Kura, the enemy is out there! What are you trying to prove?" he replied. Kura sensed a hint of anxiousness within him.
"My strength will get me my Dragonballs, and with them I can get back what's mine!" She wasn’t sure why she was talking so much, especially to Zaito. She supposed that her recent encounter in the chamber had left her a bit shaken and unsure, and now she was trying to confirm her intentions out loud, not just for her current opponent but for herself as well.

They were interrupted by the voice of Kuji.
"Zaito, Kura, your time is up, and you are needed urgently."
Kura powered down as she and Zaito looked around for Kuji. As if answering their unspoken question he spoke again. "I am at the rest area, communicating telepathically. I'm afraid our old friends the Kwalis are back."
Needing no further incentive, Kura and Zaito headed back for the rest area.
"Lucky for you, looks like I get to kill something else instead of you," she dryly chuckled. Zaito smirked, obviously taking the joke.
"Yeah, it'd be good to see how my new power compares to those clowns now."
"Keep that confidence, human. You're going to be needing it."


Sorry to end it in the same place that Heald did, but I ran out of time for now and I wanted to at least get this portion posted. I'll include encounters with the Kwali's in my next post. @_@

[Master Rudy]

Beware! long post coming up. I'm trying to cover all the bases prior to the second group going into the time chamber. It'll also let me see a little action as well ^_~

Shitagi Summers
------
"So I'm guessing we're about ready to go in then?" I asked as I walked up to the group. It consisted of myself, Basawe and Hammer who had recovered thanks some healing from Kuji. Retasu was going to be joining us as well. However at the moment she was tied up with my mom as they tried to fix Gamma. I was about to comment on it when Basawe brought it up first. "Well as you can see we're waiting on Retasu. I've got to be honest with you Shitagi. I'm a little concerned with the fact that she's going to be joining us in there. I was talking with Hammer about it. I don't know about you but I don't trust her." I looked to Hammer to see what he'd have to say on the matter. "Well I didn't know what to make of her one way or the other. However after talking it over with Basawe I'm also concerned. When we got here she promised she'd defend the planet since this was Vegeta's home." Now I was confused. "So what's the problem then?" I asked the two of them. "You see....." Basawe started to say as he looked around real quick before going on. I assumed he was making sure she wouldn't be walking up to us before he spoke. "That's the problem right there. Back on the Saiyan homeworld people are pretty quick to call your great grandfather a traitor. Working with Frieza in his younger years didn't help. Now granted the ones that do this fail to look at the facts. First he was off planet when the genocide occured. Second he never came back. You'd figure they'd be smart enough to look at the facts. Anyone normal or sane would have figured he was already dead or unable to return for whatever reason." He was about to go on when I put my hand up to stop him. "That also doesn't make sense" I said interupting him. "Retasu was talking to me about how she and many others see Vegeta as the true Saiyan king. I'm still failing to see a connection between your concerns and what she told me." Hammer made an annoyed grunt at my last comment. "I don't mean to offend you Shitagi but for a teenage genius your failing to connect the dots. Think very hard to when we first got here. The moment Kuji told her that the Dragon Balls would disappear if he died she was very quick to offer her help."

At that moment it made sense. "The Dragon Balls.....dammit" I said as I cursed at myself. Hammer was right. I was so busy looking at the big picture that I failed to notice the smaller details in the matter. If her goal was the Dragon Balls then we'd potentially be training with someone who could become an enemy. Thinking out loud now I said "Well I wouldn't think she'd be dumb enough to turn on us all. We greatly outnumber her and we're all on pretty even footing for the most part." Basawe interupted my thoughts by saying "Maybe so. However I wouldn't put it past her to hope that the coming battles thin the herd a bit." Looking back at him as I spoke I said "But there's another thing that doesn't make sense. Let's say for a moment that at the end of all of this that her one and only goal is to get the Dragon Balls. What does she wish for? She seems to despise the current Saiyan royal family that took over Planet Vegeta. She can't wish for their death since the Dragon Balls can't directly kill anyone. Granted she could maybe wish for something natural to happen such as an earthquake or meteor storm. However that runs the risk of killing innocent Saiyans. Whatever misgivings she may have I don't see her senselessly slaughtering the whole planet to get at a few select people." As I tried to think of a reason she may have for seeking out the Dragon Balls I tried to think about it from different angles. Ok.....even if she's seeking the Dragon Balls there's the fact that I'm the only one with the Dragon Radar. The only way her, Kura and Gamma could have found one was if they got into a battle with Rothax's men or if they got lucky. Regardless that's only one out of seven so......

Suddenly it all clicked together. She was traveling with Gamma when they found that Dragon Ball! Now I still didn't know who the original designer of the Android was. However the fact that he was an Android was all I needed to know. When he got damaged she was pretty insistant on the fact that she help fix him. It is possible that he's able to track the Dragon Balls somehow? I thought to myself. At this point Hammer snapped me out of my thoughts. "Is something wrong Shitagi?" he asked me. I was about to respond when I saw Retasu coming out of the corner of my eye. Not now I thought to myself. We're going into the time chamber for the next two hours. She can't do anything while she's in there with us. I'll just watch her and approach her later in my own way. As she got closer to us she said "Well I did all I can but your mother's knowledge of machines is better than my own. He's moving his head now but that's about all. She seems to think she can get him able to talk in the next five to ten minutes." I kept quiet as I was thinking to myself. Of course her knowledge is better than yours. Mine is as well. In fact if she didn't offer to help then perhaps we could have gotten him up and running quicker. She couldn't have forseen my mother showing up. However with my mind elsewhere I left the two of them alone to do it since a third person would have only been getting in the way. That would have been her perfect chance.......

"HEY! Are you listening Shitagi?"

Basawe brought me back to reality. Apparently I must have missed something important. I was about to ask them to repeat what was said when suddenly a pair of growing powers got my attention. In preparation for the time chamber I had removed my scouter to lessen the chances of it getting damaged. Shit.....if I had it on maybe I'd have noticed sooner! Turning my attention away I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the ki as it got closer. After a few seconds I instantly knew who it was. Turning towards the main building on the lookout I shouted "Kuji! We have a problem! It's....." He was already on the way out and walking towards us when he finished my sentence. "The Kawali Brothers. I already sensed their impending arrival and told Zaito and Kura that they were needed. They should be out any minute." As soon as I heard him say that I tried to think about the current situation. If the two of them were training there was the fact that they may already be slightly worn out. "No Kuji! That's a bad idea!" I said. Hammer seemed taken aback by the fact that I just told the Guardian of Earth that his idea was bad. "Excuse me?" he asked getting slightly angry. Shaking my head I told him "I'm sorry Hammer. It was not meant as disrespect towards Kuji. Even with the training I'm afraid that Kura and Zaito may only be around the level of my normal Kaio-Ken. At most they may be equal to Rothax when I fought with him, but that's nowhere near his current power level. Now granted Rothax has no idea about the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. As a result he won't be expecting us to improve so much in such a short time. However he's seen my Kaio-Ken and my mother's." Kuji seemed to think it over for a moment before asking me "Well what does it mean then?" As I took off my jacket to prepare for battle I said "It's a suicide play. Rothax is arrogant but he's not stupid. He's most likely betting on the fact that they will catch us off guard and kill some of us before me and my mother stop them. Either that or he really truely thinks they can beat us all despite the use of Kaio-Ken. What he didn't count on however was you being here. These guys aren't the smartest and they love destruction. If one stray blast hits you Kuji then I'm afraid nothing will stop Rothax from simply destroying the Earth. With no Dragon Balls his mission is over. The fact that he's got a real short fuse doesn't help either."

"So do you have a better idea?" Retasu said as she crossed her arms. She appeared to be getting bored. Not paying her any mind I continued. "All I need is five minutes Kuji. Just give me enough time to draw them away. Following my injuries in the battle with Rothax I'm pretty sure I'm close to the power level of these brutes. With Kaio-Ken I'm pretty sure I can hold my own for a little while. Retasu scoffed at that comment. "Kaio-Ken is your big plan? In case you forgot you nearly killed yourself with it!" I wasn't going to take the bait or point out that it bought the time needed to save everyone's lives. Instead I focused on what that battle taught me. "My last battle taught me a lesson with the Kaio-Ken. Since I'm not fully trained with it it's only a short term boost. Using it as an actual transformation will just get me killed until I get a little more endurance training while using it. Don't worry about me. You guys go ahead and get ready to go into the time chamber. In the meantime let Zaito and Kura know to rest for a day before coming out. If they try to fight right after training then they may be a bit weakened. That shouldn't be more than five minutes of real time. It'll be more than enough to let me lead them away and hopefully soften the two idiots up a bit." This time Hammer was about to say something but I saw the glow of the Kawali's auras getting closer in the distance. "There's no more time to argue about it guys. I got to draw them away now!"

Not waiting for a response I powered up and rushed right at them. Before they could figure out what was happening I thrust both of my hands forward and quickly fired as many ki blasts as I could at them. As expected the two of dodged the blasts by flying off into opposite directions. Flying in between the two of them I stopped using my ki to fly and turned into a headfirst freefall. The quick unexpected move made the two brothers turn their attention away from the lookout and focus on me. As I fell I focused all of my energy into attacking and fired off a few more ki blasts. Naturally they dodged those as well. Soon after one of the Kawali's spoke and laughed at what appeared to be a waste of power. "Heh heh! Look at him Kumo! The silly Saiyan can't aim properly!" With a smirk I suddenly stopped in midair and focused all my energy into the ki blasts I was dropping like bread crumbs. Guess again guys! Crossing my arms in front of me in an X formation I shouted "Scatter Shot! COMBINATION!" The two of them looked back just in time to get pelted with all the energy blasts that they thought I was missing them with. It was a much weaker version of the attack than I was trying to learn how to use. The real thing was too draining for me. However it had the desired effect. While the attack did little to no damage it did serve to piss them off and make them rush right at me and away from the lookout. Not missing a beat I powered up as much as I could and prepared my next attack.

"KAIO-KEN!"

As my hair stood on end and my red aura surrounded me I quickled gave one brother an elbow to the stomach, spun around kicked the other in the face and then finally used the extra power and speed to shoot back above them. Making sure to drop my Kaio-Ken at this point so I wouldn't waste too much power as I drew my hands back for another attack.....

"Kame...Hame...HAAAA!!!"

Once again in an attempt to conserve energy I quickly fired off a weaker Kamehameha. The attack was quick to hit and as the dust settled I could see that the two Kawali's were a little burned and bruised but otherwise ok. This time however they weren't foolish enough to rush me. They seemed to actually be thinking about their options. However from what I had already seen I figured that their mindset and anger would let them forget about the lookout as I taunted them. "Come on guys! I'm just one Saiyan!" I said as I pretended to yawn. "You guys aren't going to let a monkey beat you.....are you?" I held serious disdain for that word and didn't like using it myself. Even so I went ahead and did it. If I stroked any kind of ego these guys had then it might be all I needed to give the others enough time to rest. Sure enough the two of them started to power up and fly towards me again. Wagging my finger back and forth in a taunting gesture I said "Not so fast guys! You got to catch me first!" With that I quickly used a Kaio-Ken to boost my speed for a few seconds and put a little distance between me and them. As I dropped out of it again I heard one of the two brothers shout "Hey! That's not fair! Me and Kumo can't go that fast!" Not even bothering to face them I shouted over my shoulder "That's why I slowed down! But that doesn't change the game. You still got to catch me if you want to win!" As I drew them away from the lookout I thought to myself Ok.....It's been about three minutes. In another two Kura and Zaito should be joining me to finish them off. After that I got to focus on the training in the time chamber.

We were going to need all the help we could get in the coming battles......
------

There you go! Got a little action for myself, addressed the Kawali's and even gave MC an opening to begin his return for Gamma! As for telling Kura and Zaito to hold off a day of rest for them is only about four or five minutes. As a result Heald and Kuro can jump right back into it very quickly. These events with Shitagi acting as a decoy will give Hammer, Basawe and Retasu perhaps 12-24 hours head start in their training which once again is only a few minutes of real time (unless they wait for him to return). Even with the head start any kind of power gain should be small enough to leave the four of them on still equal terms.

As for Retasu here's how it goes. Bran was gone for awhile so I'm working on the assumption that she was able to pull what she needed from Gamma. Since Shitagi is pretty smart once he pieced it all together he figured it out. However he's not going to say anything just yet. Instead he'll try to feel her out a little bit before he says anything on the matter ^_~

[Mystic_clown]

Psycho Soldier Gamma
---------------------------------------

Gamma slowly pulled himself up, looking over his form. His repairs had finally been completed. He looked brand new. He had to admit, those who were working on him had done a pretty good job. He flexed his arms and fingers. Everything seemed in order. He looked over at the Saiyan, Retasu. For someone who seemed more interested in fighting, she was pretty good with mechanics.

“Thank you,” he replied, his voice and face as blank as usual. The saiyan responded with a light smirk.

“You’re welcome,” she replied, calmly walking out straight after, leaving Gamma alone.

The android continued to look over his body. Images of the battle against Rothax flashed in his mind. No, not a battle. More like a laughter. If he were anything but an android, he would have been long dead. Heck, he came close to shutting down permanently from that assault.

Then it hit him. He had failed…

His reason for existence was to protect the Earth. He was created to be strong enough to defeat any threat to the safety of humanity. And yet in that battle he was completely outclassed.

Was he a failure, just like Alpha and Beta before him?

He felt a feeling stirring inside him. What was this? Sadness? Despair? How could this be? He should have no emotions what so ever. He was not to be like Beta, who’s emotions drove her to insanity.

He didn’t know how long he had sat there, milling through his problems. He was however knocked out of it by the sounds of battle coming from outside. At that point his sensors picked up the strong power levels out there.

How could I have missed them until now?

He got up and surprisingly calmly walked outside.

Just as expected, outside was a battle raging between the human known as Shitagi, and two unknown alien beings. Shitagi was the stronger of the three, but not by a significant margin. Even as the human pulled from the lookout with the aliens in pursuit, he could still read his thoughts.

Ok.....It's been about three minutes. In another two Kura and Zaito should be joining me to finish them off. After that I got to focus on the training in the time chamber.

The time chamber? He would have to ask about that once this was over. As for the help, well, Shitagi wont have to wait. Even if he was a failure, he had a job to do. Hovering in the air for a moment, he shot off after the three, willing to provide any assistance.

Gamma’s entering the fight.

[Asilynne]

~~Retasu~~
Its not stealing persay, not if you give something in return.

After what seemed like forever of trying to delay the repairs on Gamma, Shitagi left me alone save for his mother. I eyed her carefully as she tried to make smalltalk, which soon faded into muttering to herself about the necessary repairs. She appeared to be so deep into connecting the circuits of his abdomon I figured now was as good a time as any to do what I intended. Adjusting something on my scouter I pulled on a small indentation, revealing a small cord which I then hooked up to a port under the hair and scalp of the false humans head. “Now to see if his personality core survived the battle…” I murmured so as not to draw suspicion to what I was about to do.

Oh sure, I was going to do what I said. But that wasn’t all. I wanted that ability to sense the dragonballs, and I was going to have it. But if I removed his ability to sense them he would grow suspicious, so I couldn’t just erase it once I’ve taken what I needed. As I deliberated on what to do I preformed a scan of his cranial core, and sent pulses down them to make sure there were no breaks. Since all seemed well I set my scouter on a search of any program that made use of the particular signature that dragonballs seemed to have, and returned to the problem at hand.

There had to be some way to prevent him from using the tracking device without actually removing it from his processor. It would have to be something his system might see as a slight malfunction, due to the damage he took. And then it came to me.

A program anomaly. Something that would surface in his consiousness periodically to cloud his mind, distracting him from noticing my tampering. Instantly an idea sprang to mind. What clouds the mind more than emotions? But I couldn’t make it obvious, he would then be able to simply isolate the addition and purge it from his system. I had to make his system believe it belonged there. It took some rerouting through his safeguards to do it but I managed to place a file into his subconscious. A file detailing Life Code of Saiyans, describing a proper saiyan way to live, fight, and die. If anything could rouse emotions it was that.

Having covered my ass so to speak, I checked up on the search for the program. My scouter had isolated it and was already working on translating it to copy it over. After a minute or so of tense waiting, it was finally complete. Unhooking Gamma’s head from my scouter I accessed the new program and saw the distances and direction arrows pop up for the dragonballs in the near area. I almost yelled for joy, but stifled it just as Shitagi’s mother turned her face towards me. “Im guessing you have some good news?”

“Yes, very.” I tried not to smirk as I cleared my throat, reattaching his scalp. “All his neural pathways are undamaged, and Ive rerouted any that seemed to be flawed. As soon as everythings reattached Id say hes good to go.” I stood up, gazing down at the small woman. “I trust you can take it from here, the others may need me.”

She nodded, going back to her work. “Of course, and thanks for the help.”
I smiled, turning to walk out of the room. “Helping was its own reward.”

In order to avoid suspicion I decided to help out in the battle to come, but when I found an opening I resolved to take the confusion as an opportunity to leave unnoticed. All I could do now was hope that my little mindraping was enough to keep Gamma from finding and acquiring the dragonballs before I could.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sorry its so late x.x and shitty. Ill do better in the future >.>

[Blademaster]

Basawe

“Helping was its own reward.” she said as she turned to walk out of the room...

...and into Basawe and Kuji.

"'Helping was it's own reward.'." Basawe said, giving Retasu a dirty look that could probably kill a human. "Really? That's not the Saiyan creed I learned on Ninjin. The one I learned was more like "Helping is it's own reward when it benefits you." Does that sound familiar to you at all?"

Retasu waved her hand.

"Basawe, how often do we have to go through this?" she said in a patronizing tone. "You act like I'M the bad guy everytime we walk into each other."

"Not three hours ago, you threatened to blow up the planet when your ship landed at the stadium." Basawe sneered, looking past Retasu and at the now-intact Gamma on the table. The elder woman tending to him stopped and her jaw dropped when she heard Basawe's statement. Retasu growled.

"Shut your mouth." she ordered. "I have my reasons for being here, and blowing up this world isn't one of them. Now get out of my way."

But Basawe stood his ground.

"That man... robot man..." he stuttered.

"Android." Kuji and the woman tending said Android replied simultaneously.

"That Android." Basawe finished. "Why did you offer to fix him? You're a Saiyan princess. That means you're the most pompous and uncaring of all of them. You wouldn't help anyone unless it benefitted you. And don't tell me that you thought his help was needed in battle - he's already been defeated once, and you're stronger than him anyway. Saiyans NEVER help the weak."

Retasu paused for a moment, before responding.

"Then why don't you tell me why they fixed you...?"

Silence filled the room... Basawe just stood there, unsure of what he'd just heard. Retasu... was right. Why WAS he helped...? And the Android... They were both very similar to their kind, yet also very different. Was it interest in their potential that persuaded the Saiyans to assist them? A desire to know more about the unknown? That had to be it. A desire to see a stronger weapon.

Basawe knew that, for all his strange enhancements, he was NOT that weapon... Retasu's eyes seemed to silently confirm that, but not in the smug mocking way she normally would have... It was just a fact, one that she seemed almost pensive over.

"Thank you."

The silence was broken by the Android, who was now sitting up.

And addressing Retasu.

"You're welcome." she replied, smiling slightly, and then turning to leave. Kuji gave Basawe a sympathetic look before he and Victoria left as well.

Basawe just stood there for a long moment, looking through his mind much like Gamma looked over his body. He had very rarely questioned it, and certainly nobody else had. He just accepted it and went on with his less-than-perfect life. But Retasu's question had hit him hard...

BEEP BEEP BEEP

Both men snapped out of their musings when Basawe's scouter beeped. Some sort of explosive noise resounded from outside... Gamma got up and walked towards the source of the sound. Basawe ran.

The Kwalis had returned, and Shitagi had engaged them. Basawe glanced between the three fighters.

71464784561534253274321624835892524715382561

3493.

3501.

3862.

Basawe's jaw nearly dropped. Shitagi was... the STRONGEST of the three?!

'The Chamber...' Basawe thought. He glanced down at his hand again.

2665.

'It really worked. I'm not even attempting to focus my energy and I'm already twice as strong as before...'

Basawe looked towards his... friend. He clenched his fist.

2899.

'I can philosophize later. Right now, it's time for me to prove myself.'
He jetted off into the sky after the three combatants, then pulled back his fist. It glowed with a vivid, wild orange energy, then opened. A sphere of energy congealed and began to crackle and pulse.

"BASAWE BOMB!!!!!"

Basawe flung the sphere at Kados, who didn't seem to notice it until it was right behind him. He spun around in mid-air.

KAFWOOOOOM!!!!

A scream filled the air as the attack detonated. Kamo and Shitagi stared at the cloud of smoke where Kados had just been with wide eyes.

As the smoke cleared, a shape began to emerge... Kados was still alive, but his armor was broken and battered, and his skin was charred and scratched.

"Kados...?" his brother said, a slight crack in his voice.

Kados gritted his teeth in pain, then glared up at Basawe.

"That... HURT." he snapped, putting his hands together and conjuring a ball of energy...

PWING!

The ball was struck by a dagger of pinkish energy, blowing it up. Another scream came; the other fighters looked around for the source of the attack.

There, hovering in the air beside Basawe, was Gamma, a finger pointed at Kados.

"Aaagh... Three against two isn't fair!" Kamo whined.

The cloud around Kados' body was instantly dispelled by his aura, which had flared up. Kados was PISSED.

"So they got one more weakling." Kados scoffed. "None of 'em are a match for the Kwali brothers! Let's get 'em!"


------------

The battle with the revived Kwalis is heating up, and it's only going to get hotter from here. Can our ragtag group of heroes use their newfound strength to defeat Kamo and Kados before they can damage the sacred Lookout? Or will the brotherly brutes use their sheer force to snuff out the last hopes of the planet? Find out next time on DragonBallZSU!!

[Master Rudy]

Shitagi Summers
The end of the Kwali Brothers......or the end of us?
------
With the arrival of Basawe and Gamma I had a chance to drift away from the battle for a moment. While I was still in fairly decent shape the last thing I wanted was to draw out a battle against both of these guys. Despite being stronger than me one of them wasn't much of an issue. I was fairly close to their power levels and I had speed on my side. However a battle with both of them for a prolonged period was not ideal. Even with Kaio-Ken's ability to outclass them in every way I knew that it'd only be a matter of time before that skill failed me due to overuse.

While the others kept the two brothers busy I used this moment to get a quick breather. I also reached into the pocket of my pants and put my scouter back on. Looking around the battle I managed to get an idea of how we were doing compared to Kamo and Kados. Basawe's power level was currently at 3012. Gamma was giving off no reading at all which wasn't a surprise. What worried me however was the Kwali's. 3500 for Kados and 3485 for Kamo? This isn't right. I know I didn't do that much damage to them. It can only mean......

Suddenly in the middle of an onslaught from Basawe, Kados dodged a punch and then grabbed him by the neck. As he gleefully laughed over the situation his power level started to quickly climb back up to the levels I was reading from them during the destruction of West City. Gamma was still holding his own but the frantic beeping from my scouter comfirmed that the same thing was happening with Kamo as well. It didn't take very long for each of them to climb past the 5000 mark. I should have known! I thought to myself in a panic. The two of them were not taking me seriously! Now that it's three on two they want to end this.

Before I could react I watched as Kados punched Basawe in the stomach twice and then gave him a swift headbutt that sent him flying back towards the Earth. Not wasting any time Kados shot a beam from his mouth at Basawe that would completely engulf him if I didn't do something quick. Without thinking twice I powered up using the Kaio-Ken and flew to intercept the blast. I managed to get between Basawe and the attack but I had no time to counter it. All I could do was brace myself and throw my hands out in an attempt to stop and deflect the attack. It quickly became clear that this was a bad idea. Even with the Kaio-Ken aiding me I was starting to lose ground. Suddenly from right next to me I heard a voice shout......

"BASAWE BEAM!"

Basawe had managed to recover from his freefall and was now right next to me trying to help me push this thing away with his own attack. With his beam intercepting the other I too fell back into my own attack stance and tried to counter the grossly overpowered attack from Kados......

"KAMEHAMEHA!"

It was now two on one and we were finally able to get this thing away from us a bit. It wouldn't last long however. I sensed the power level of Kados starting to climb again as my scouter started to beep and comfirm that it wasn't my mind playing tricks on me. There's no way! How could he be THIS strong!? As the beam started to come back towards us once more I knew I had no choice in the matter. With a shout my red aura grew more intense. However I was about to get my own surprise as a bright orange aura flared up around Basawe as well......

"KAIO-KEN TIMES THREE!!!"
"BASAWE BOOST!!!"

What the hell?! Risking a glance off to my left I saw that he too had powered up in a similar fashion to me. Amazing! Not only does he have his own version of the Kamehameha but he's also got his own variant of the Kaio-Ken as well! It was at this point that I knew I had to help him refine his skills. Basawe had enough potential to possibly even rival Goku with enough training. We had to focus on the matter at hand however. With my power level near 12,000 and Basawe's now at about 15,000 there was no way Kados could beat us. Our combined attack was quickly overcoming the beam from Kados. Suddenly he broke off the attack and with no warning his power level spiked from a brief moment before he swatted the combined Kamehameha and Basawe Beam away like it was nothing. Then just as quickly as that burst came it was gone and Kados was back at his normal levels. The damage was already done to myself and Basawe however as we dropped out of our respective powered up states. "Unreal!" was all Basawe could say as he tried to catch his breath. I too was stunned over that display of power. Kados wasn't Rothax. It seemed like offensively he could only go so high but defensively this guy was like a tank. "How can a monster like this exist?" I asked no one in paticular. Gamma seemed to be holding his own better than us but eventually he too got beat back. Eventually he fell back and rejoined me and Basawe and Kamo did the same and joined back up with Kados. "I sure hope one of you guys have an idea. This really isn't looking good!" Basawe said as he attempted to power back up for the next inevitable onslaught.

Just when I was beginning to think we may had bit off more than we could chew a orange and blue blur suddenly came speeding out of nowhere and kicked Kados right into Kamo and sent both of them flying. Looking to my left slightly I saw that it was Zaito! Not far behind him was Kura who was also joined by Retasu, Hammer and my mother. "So were the three of you seriously going to take all of the fun away from me and the human?" Kura asked as she floated there with her arms crossed. With a chuckle I said "Well I should be getting all the credit for that! Basawe, Retasu and Hammer are suppose to be training. Of course I'm not complaing about the extra help." With a look of relief on her face my mother said "Well you should know better than to run off alone like this!" Shrugging I told her jokingly "I wonder where I learned that from....."

The reunion of friends and family was quickly cut off by the Kwali Brothers who came charging back towards the fight like a couple of bats out of hell. "Damn you Pinky!" Kados shouted at Zaito as the two of them rushed straight at him. Basawe looked at me with a nevous glance as we watched. "Uh.....don't you think we should be helping him? You saw what they did to us!" he said sounding concerned. Crossing my arms as I checked my scouter I said "Nah.....this should be easy for Zaito. At worst if he does need help he's got Kura as well. If I had any money on me I'd say this will be over in about 60 seconds." Zaito's power level on the scouter was currently only coming back as 2300 but I knew better. Following that training him and Kura should be able to easily outclass these guys without any kind of artificial power boost. It's going to be fun to see where they sit now......
------

There we go! Got everyone in on the act now so they can post their own thoughts on the battle. Now with Kura and Zaito in the fight I gladly toss this back at Heald and Sarah ^_~

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

The first reference to anyone resembling Van Osiku has not yet come to light. What references there are all refer to the figure as though he has appeared before, or are from people who have met him in the past.

Perhaps the most interesting, however, is from the first person who claimed to have killed him. In the police report, he admits to having killed "the individual in question" for having owed him money.

"I grabbed the baseball bat," he stated for the record, "and I just kept hitting him. I hit him again and again, 'til he stopped moving.

"When I was done, you couldn't even recognize him. And then... there was just dust and ashes. It was like he'd spent a decade rotting.

"Took all of a second."

On the same day, across the planet, someone took Van Osiku's picture. He was unmarked.

It wasn't clear how long Van Osiku lay on the beach, unconscious and unmoving, before he finally awoke. He stirred once, then rose, blinking and unsteady, onto his hands.

Automatically, he looked to his side. The satchel was still there, and he could feel the energy of the three spheres inside of it. It reassured him, somehow.

There didn't seem to be anything or anyone on the island. In fact, it was more of a sandbar than an actual island. He would not be interrupted.

Standing up, Van dusted the sand from his clothes, then sat back down and dumped the three spheres onto his lap. He wondered, for a moment, what sort of visions he would get.

Then he set his hands on the spheres, and his eyes went somewhere else.

The man who looked like him had left the city of towers a short while ago, and now walked along a plain dirt road, a smile on his face. Over one shoulder he carried a cloth bag, tied with a silk rope.

At the end of the road there was a moderate-sized house, with two soft lights on either side of the door. Even as the man approached it, the door opened, and a young boy ran out and hugged him.

"Owain!" the man said. He set the bag down and picked the boy up, holding him close. "Were you good for your mother today?"

"That he was," a woman's voice answered. At that point, a petite blonde woman walked up to them, poking the man in the chest. "Better than you can be, Vanel."

Vanel - so that was his name - just grinned. "I do try, Gineva. But they need me a lot in the palace anymore. You know that."

"Whatever's important enough that they need scholars so often is a little worrisome," the woman said, running a hand through her hair. Then she took the boy out of Vanel's arms and set him down. "Back in the house, Owain. Supper's almost ready."

"Can we check the nets tonight, dad?" Owain asked Vanel as he turned towards the house.

"Of course we can," Vanel answered, mussing his son's hair as they walked away.

The vision ended, and Van shuddered for a second, pulling his hands back like they were burnt. He turned, hacked for a second, and then vomited, tears rolling from his eyes. Nothing came out - it hit him that he hadn't eaten in a long while.

Why that memory did that to him, he had no idea.

Despite his misgivings, he set his hands back on the spheres and waited for the next vision.

"Mastiu!"

The yell echoed through the halls of the great palace, and a man in shining blue robes ran into the room from which the yell came. He knelt before a great metal throne, pressing the knuckles of his right hand into the ground. "You called for me, Great Father?"

"Yes, my boy," the man on the throne answered. He was old, but his muscles still bore strength and his eyes wisdom. His hair had long since left, and the circlet of gold he wore shone all the more for the lack of contrast. He slumped slightly, even as he looked to Mastiu. "What is this I've heard of the coming lights?"

"Ositra claims that he sees lights coming near the planet," Mastiu said, not raising his eyes from the floor. "He claims also they are in accordance with prophecy."

"And are there such lights?"

"Merely comets, Great Father," he said, a smirk on his face. "Kerayu has nothing to fear."

"Are you so sure?"

The man on the throne looked up, and Mastiu whipped his head around. Another man, thinner and younger than either, had entered the room. He knelt for just a moment before standing again.

"Do not tell me you've bought into Ositra's claims, brother!" Mastiu said, his voice echoing his disbelief.

The younger man shook his head, taking a scroll out of his robes. "Not without reason." He then moved to the throne and handed it to the man seated there before kneeling anew. "I searched the accords for any sign of what Ositra claims to have seen. And this, Great Father, is what I have found."

The Great Father unrolled the scroll, reading it quietly. Then he sighed, rolling it up again. "Bring Ositra before me. This is not something I can understand alone."

This time, there was not nearly as strong a reaction when Van took his palms away. The vision swam on his eyes for a moment, but he could make no claim of understanding it. He blinked, then placed his hands on the spheres one more time.

There was turmoil outside, and bloodshed. Something had gone wrong.

Great bursts of power came, went and were silent, and it fed on all of it. Perhaps now they would need the power.

It could feel disruptions, and knew they could be dangerous. If anyone were to call to it, they would need to act soon.

Then it could feel all of the pieces come together. The one carrying the last of them radiated pain and loss.

Now it could finally act. The time had come.

All the pieces came together, and it opened.

One by one, Van put the spheres back into his satchel. The visions were growing stronger and clearer, but he still couldn't understand what they meant. Something deep inside him told him, however, that he already knew. He just didn't know he knew.

He hated philosophy.

Standing up, he could feel a sudden spike of energy, somewhere far away. It was as though many powerful people were all engaged in battle. For a moment, he wondered what it was like.

Then the air blurred.

When the air cleared, Van Osiku stood in the middle of a raging battle. A pair of very angry humanoid creatures were rushing at him, violence on their minds. On his other side was a very angry man, clearly out to inflict violence on them.

And he was at the center of it all. Or, more accurately, the point of impact.

Van reacted to this the only way he knew how.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"

Energy burst out of him, and all three parties slammed into the ground, leaving large divots at the point of impact.

"Who the hell are you?!?" one of the two on his left asked as they got back up.

"Oh, how I wish I could answer that," Van replied. Prudently, he jetted backwards about fifty yards.
----
If the mountain won't come to Mohammed, send Mohammed to the mountain.

[Bear]

Hammer

It looked like the rest of the group had arrived just in time. As Hammer feared, the Kwali brothers were much stronger than Basawe's device had initially indicated. As he surveyed the battle going on at first, he became concerned. Despite the fact that the Kwalis continued to be more and more outnumbered, their powers were still rising. The others were still holding up, but they wouldn't be able to maintain that footing for very long if this trend continued.

"Looks like the outcome of the battle will depend on those two." Hammer said to himself, glancing at Kura and Zaito out of the corner of his eye.

Hammer's thoughts were interrupted by a massive explosion of energy. He just barely was able to get his arms up to shield as the explosion reverberated in all directions. When the energy cleared, he looked around for the source of the blast. He saw the slightly larger alien, Kamo, floating in a fixed position with his arms outstretched. He quickly lowered his arms and then pointed at the group of onlookers who had not joined in yet.

"What's the matter, are you guys too scared to come play with us?" Kamo shouted, indicating his blast was intended for us. Hammer's glance was drawn to Kura, who was about to respond to the alien's taunt.

"Not really, I was just letting these little ones have some fun before I killed you." Kura stated with a smirk, gently flipping her hair away from her face. Kamo's confident smile faded a bit and he clenched his teeth.

"Snotty bitch, I'll wipe that smile off your face!" Kamo belted, powering up and firing a concentrated beam right at Kura. Kura remained motionless with her arms folded as the beam rapidly approached her. At the very last instant, she nonchalantly reached out and swatted the beam away, sailing it harmlessly off into the distance.

"WHAT!?" Kamo exclaimed in disbelief, "How did you get so strong so quickly?"

Kura's smirk turned into a full grin.

"I'll tell you when you're dead!" she taunted, staring down the alien.

Hammer's concern was beginning to fade, but it didn't take long for that trend to reverse.

"Grrrrr....THAT'S IT! RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Kamo screamed, crossing his arms in front of him. Wind began swirling rapidly, and Kamo's power began to rise.

And rise...

And rise...

As Hammer and the others watched in horror, Kamo's power skyrocketed. The wind became so intense that we were barely able to keep from being blown away. Even Kura's confident grin had turned back to a serious battle face. Hammer turned his attention back to himself, looking down at his opened hands.

Father, please lend me your strength. At my peak earlier I felt it flowing through me. I can't let these villains impose their will on this planet any longer!

Hammer clenched his fists and began to power up. He hoped the others were doing the same, as he knew it would take all of us to beat these two...

[Blademaster]

Was gonna include this in the last post, but the damn thing was long enough. So, yeah.

Rothax

He could sense it.

Though not as versed in sensing energy signatures as his opponents, he could still feel the increase in the Earth warriors' powers. He knew the Kwalis were being pushed to their upper limits.

'This planet is just full of surprises.' he thought, stepping up to a door outfitted with a strange locking mechanism. The alien overlord inserted one clawed finger into the lock; a hot sensation bathed that finger, and the insides of the lock suddenly loosened. Rothax turned his claw, and the lock twisted sideways. The door opened.

Inside was his machine. The device designed to sever the link between the Dragonballs and the dragon whose power they contained. The seven clasp-topped pillars at the side of the room looked even more spindly than before. They seemed to be reaching. They knew their creator had finally brought them what they needed.

Rothax walked to the terminal beside his device and ran his fingers across the keys. The screen flashed across several indecipherable screens of text - antiviruses, security encryptions, blueprints. They finally halted, and a breadbox-sized panel opened under the keyboard.

'It's finally happening.' Rothax thought, grinning a toothy grin as the monitor began to analyze his acquisitions. In just a few short minutes, it'd be ready...

Rothax's vision blurred suddenly. He held his head. He forgot about his aneurysm. It'd be a few minutes before the computer finished comparing the Dragonballs' energy signatures... He might as well get it fixed. He turned and exited the room, the door shutting of its own accord behind him as he walked down the hall to the medical bay, entered, and hooked his armor to a strange device resembling a metal octopus - a rounded silver box with various tentacular tubes extending from it, each serving a different function. Almost immediately, Rothax felt the nanoscopic machinery pinpoint his injury and begin to repair it...

"COMING SROUGH! EMERGENCY!"

Rothax looked up as the door flew open and a short creature in a sterilization suit came barging in. A soldier alongside of him pushed a gourney, atop which lay another, critically wounded soldier. Rothax recognized their armors' insignia...

'Luti Squad?' he thought.

"What happened?! What is this?"

The short creature - a doctor or scientist of some kind - didn't answer. He merely wheeled the gourney to the machine beside Rothax and hooked SEVERAL of the tubes to his armor. The conscious soldier stood back and knelt before his superior, wincing.

"Captain, sir," he said, his voice thick with pain, "we found an Earthling. He was... He had Dragonballs. We overpowered him, but he transformed somehow... All of Luti was wiped out except the two of us."

Rothax's response was predictable.

"And you idiots RAN?!" he thundered. "How strong could one Earthling be!?"

A sudden spike of energy in the distance seemed to answer that question.

"...His power level peaked at 3500 before he transformed, sir." the soldier said feebly. "After that... It had to double, at least. Maybe triple."

"The rest of the squad is empty-handed AND dead?" Rothax snarled, his head beginning to hurt again.

"Dead is an understatement, sir..." the soldier replied, shaking. "The two of us were lucky. We couldn't bring the others' bodies back because there wasn't enough left TO bring back..."

With that, the soldier coughed up a mouthful of blood and water, as though he'd been drowning the whole time he spoke. He fell to his hands and knees.

"Agh!" the doctor snapped, disgust in his voice as he lifted the soldier up and dragged him to the healing machine. "Sat will have to be disinfected again..."

"LET HIM SPEAK!" Rothax demanded.

"He'll die before he has a chance to if I don't treat him!" the doctor retorted in a rare display of defiance against his frightening CO. "Keep sis in your mouth, soldier. And stop shaking so much! You'll imbalance se VM meter."

"S-sir..." the soldier said weakly, his voice slightly muffled by the tube in his mouth. "The one that killed us... he had 2 Dragonballs... found a third after engaging us..."

"WHAT?!" Rothax ripped the machine off his now-healed body. "He has three!? Where did he go!?!?"

"N...north... Towards the others... It was him, sir. The prisoner."

"Tennan!" Rothax hollered into his radio. "Status on the human Blaque and Whyte brought in now!"

"He's still unconscious, sir." Tennan's feeble voice replied.

"Not him..." the soldier rasped before Rothax could further yell at his navigator. "The first one... He was much stronger, but it was him..."

"That one is dead!" Rothax growled.

"He... was alive enough to kill us..."

And with that, the soldier's consciousness finally faded. The tube fell from his mouth, blood and water dribbling from it. His body ceased shaking.

Rothax stared down at the soldier for a moment, before placing a hand over his eyes and closing them.

"Rinetst," he said in a low voice, addressing the doctor, "you know what to do with him."

"I do."

"What about that one?"

"His condition is critical. I cannot say yet. He seems stable, but it could go eiser way at sis point."

"...Do what you can, then." Rothax said, heading back to his machine.

'So the Earthlings have five Dragonballs now.' he thought as he walked. 'That means they've all been gathered. That's one good thing.'

Rothax was pleased to see that, as he'd hoped, the computer was done scanning. The panel had reopened, and two claws of the seven were now eagerly awaiting their yield.

'But these Earthlings are much stronger than I thought.' he pondered, placing the ball with a single star in one claw. 'All my footsoldiers are dead, and the only survivor isn't even a close match for any of them anymore.'

He placed the six-starred ball in the other claw.

'I can't be cocky. The Kwalis are strong, but they're slow and stupid. And Blaque and Whyte are fast, smart, and can work together, but their true power leaves a lot to be desired...'

That's when it hit him. Rothax actually smacked his forehead.

'That's it... It's so obvious. If brute strength won't work, combine it with brainpower...'

"Blaque, Whyte, come in."

"Yes, m'lord?" Whyte's voice replied in a calm, almost bored tone.

"Both of you, meet me on the deck immediately."

"Yes, m'lord."

Rothax changed his frequency and then spoke in a different voice - a voice that wasn't commanding as when he spoke to Tennan or jovial as when addressing Shimuto, but a tone of utter seriousness and... respect.

"Chita, do you read me?"

There was a long pause, before a quiet, feminine voice finally replied.

"I read you, captain." she said. "What do you need?"

"I trust you've been monitoring the Kwalis and their opponents, haven't you?"

The reply he got sounded downright insulted.

"I monitor everything, captain." she said in a voice as quiet yet sharp as a dagger across the throat. "That is my job."

"Yes, of course." Rothax said emotionlessly. "I meant no disrespect... You know, then, that these Earthlings are giving my men trouble. I'm sending reinforcements. And I want you to spearhead them."

A pause.

"...When do I leave?"

I'll brief you on the deck. Be there in-"

"I'm already there, captain."

------------------------

The Earth's heroes have finally gained a numerical advantage against the Kwali brothers, only for Rothax to quell their hopes by sending in his entire elite fighting force. What sort of secrets does the omniscient enigma known as Chita hide? And will our heroes be able to hold their ground against Rothax's most fearsome fivesome of galactic mercenaries? Find out in the next post on DragonBallSU!!

[Heald]

Zaito Zhin

Kuji led the way as Kura and Zaito followed him out of the chamber. Notably, the only one who remained at the Lookout appeared to be Furuto. A quick scan from the Lookout indicated that everyone has left to go engage the Kwalis. The most powerful levels that could be felt by far were Basawe and Shitagi, although their energy was burning so wild that it was clear they were relying on techniques to increase their power levels, such as a Kaioken, in order to hold of the Kwalis.

"As you have probably already guessed, the others are holding off the Kwalis, however, with your training you should be able to defeat them," Kuji stated. Zaito and Kura looked at each other and then began stretching and flexing ready to join the battle.
"Now, if you feel you need rest, I'm sure-" Kuji began, but was cut off by Kura, who scoffed,
"Hah! Rest? I'm sorry Guardian, but if that is the best those freaks can do, then it's they who will need a rest to stand a chance against me!"
Before Kuji could protest, Kura powered up and blasted towards the edge of the Lookout, before flying down towards the battle. Zaito grinned.
"Well, guess I'd better go catch her," he smiled. He then ran towards the edge of the Lookout and took a leap, tucking his arms in at his sides and plummeted towards the Earth.

The feeling of the air whistling past his ears was exhilarating, blasting towards the planet at blistering speed, but he needed to catch up with Kura. He closed his eyes and began to concentrate, picturing the world in his mind not in terms of what he could see but what he could feel. As he did, he began to summon energy around him, channelling all the air and wind around him around his body, absorbing the energy and turning it into power for himself. He then felt outwards and first detected Kura's energy, who was about a mile ahead of him, then the energy of the battle he was heading towards. His eyes remained closed but he changed course, blasting at tremendous speed towards the battle. It was only a matter of seconds before he had caught up with Kura and then overtook her. Kura began to give chase to Zaito, but before long they had reached the battle. Zaito, still with his eyes closed, had already felt out the energy of both his friends and foes and as he blasted into the centre of the battle, he opened his eyes and prepared a kick, sending Kados into Kamo and sending them both flying.

[The Arrival of Help]

He then composed himself and turned to the onlookers, and noticed Kura had also appeared with them. Shitagi gave a smile.
"Nice to see you've joined us," he said, powering down. He looked like he had a hard enough time holding off these brutes.
"You lot get back to the Lookout and get training; these two will be no match for Kura and myself."

"RAAAAAAAAAAAGH! PINKY!" a yell came his way and Zaito quickly turned around to see both Kwalis appearing on either side of him, fist outstretched. He effortlessly dodged each fist and, between the two of them both sending punches his way, he was weaving in and out of their fists without even trying. The Kwalis, not even managing to graze Zaito, instead spent most of their time hitting each other's fists, causing loud cracks as the energy collided with each other. Zaito could feel each alien's fist aiming towards him and he quickly concentrated.
"Bikokaze!" he whispered to himself and he disappeared and reappeared in almost an instant outside of the flurry, watching as each Kwali punched each other in the face, with an earthshaking crack as the two brutish energies struck each other. The onlookers' expressions were a mixture of surprise, enjoyment and confusion, all except for Kura who, having been with Zaito the entire time for the training, knew exactly what he was capable of.
"Zaito, you-" Shitagi began.
"20 times Earth's gravity will make you this fast, but you need to go train now! We'll deal with these morons," he said. Kura smiled.
"Hey now human, what's this 'we' business? I'm going to kill these idiots with both hands tied behind my back!"
Zaito smirked.
"What, and miss out on my opportunity to get revenge for the beating they gave me earlier? Fat chance. Listen, you take the blue one. Kamo, the orange one? Well, lets say I've still coughing up photocopier toner thanks to that prick."
"Suit yourself, he seems to be the weaker one anyway," Kura laughed. Zaito nodded to Shitagi and the others, who were beginning to leave.

"NO! NO ONE LEAVES! YOU WILL ALL DIE!" one of the Kwalis yelled unexpectedly. Zaito turned around and saw one of them facing those who were about to leave, his mouth glowing. Opening his mouth out wide, he fired a powerful glowing energy ball towards those who were leaving. Zaito instantly intercepted the ball, catching it in his outstretched hand and swung it around, sending it flying straight back into Kamo's face. The explosion was large, but not enough to do more than stun. Zaito kept a stern face as the smoke cleared and the rest of the group had safely gotten away.
"Listen aliens, you are dealing with us now, and I'm going to make you pay for every human life you have taken."
As Zaito charged towards them, a blinding flash appeared between him and the Kwalis, sending him back in surprise. When he looked again, someone else had appeared.
"Who is...wait a minute, wasn't he at the tournament?" Kura inquired. Zaito examined him.
"...Yes, I can't remember his name but he was definitely there. Question is, why is he here now, and is he on our side?"

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

Few people have any record of Van Osiku's fighting style. Even the video recording of him at the Tenkaichi Budokai shows little of him in action. What recordings of such do exist were given to a panel of experts to study.

One claimed that his fighting style was vaguely similar to drunken boxing, but this was disputed by the others. The consensus was that wherever Van learned how to fight, he did not learn any style they knew about.

Van himself has never commented on where he learned to fight, or what style he uses. What is evident is that he is not particularly fond of fighting.

It took a few moments for Van's head to clear as he hovered there, his eyes closed. For the moment, the big guys and the others were more interested in each other, giving him some time to get his head back in line. Then he looked around the group, muscles tensed in preparation for immediate escape, if it were necessary.

On one side of him were the large, rather ugly fellows who'd yelled at him on his sudden arrival. He couldn't place their species, but they seemed along the lines of the ones who had attacked him when he'd picked up the third Dragon Ball. Obviously hostile, and a danger to his continued life.

On the other side... it was a mixed bag, to be sure. Several people of various appearances and power levels were engaged in battle with the ugly fellows, for what reason he could not ascertain. Some of them sparked little jolts of recognition, and he tried to remember where he'd seen them.

Nothing was coming up. He concentrated, giving himself a headache, but he could not remember where precisely he had seen them before.

That doesn't make any sense, he thought. My memory is usually full of holes anyway, but why this one? He looked to the girl in the group again and thought, And why does she make me feel very, very worried?

The battle seemed to be going all right, and so he hovered at the edge of it, more worried about accidentally getting hit than about any determined offense. But his eyes kept going back to the woman, the one who was clearly not human, as though there were something he desperately needed to remember.

She has to die.

Who the hell are you?!?

For what she did to us, to you, to the world, she has to die.

She hasn't done anything to us, and the world is distinctly unmarked. What the hell are you talking about? Van put one hand to his head, shivering as he did. The last time a new voice had spoken in his head, he had gone berserk and slaughtered those aliens.

That you do not remember is an insult to those who suffered at her hands. She has to die. You must kill her.

Okay, then. You tell me. What did she do that was so bad she has to die for it?

There was silence in his skull, and then a quiet response. I... do not remember... But she did something so terrible it cannot be forgiven.

Van sighed. The voices in his head were amnesiac.

So you will not kill her?

I have no reason to. Whatever crime she did, it would be wrong to punish her if we can't even remember why.

Then I must apologize.

And the world went psychadelic around him as Van Osiku plummeted to the ground, clutching his head. He landed on his knees, where he stayed, shuddering now and then.

Within his mind, he waged psychic war with a voice he could not identify.

----

Who is this new voice, and what does it have against Kura? Answers may or may not be forthcoming.

[Crazy Elf Boy]

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Sandor *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sweat dripped down from her face and onto the pure white ground beneath her staining it a light grey. Her breathing was heavy as she felt drained of her energy, bringing her arms up Sandor wiped the sweat of her face and continued on with her training. Her arms were hurting, a pain which she had never felt before but she had to continue no matter how much here body hurt. She had been going at it for what seemed like ages, this hyperbolic time chamber seemed strange to her. She couldn’t quite understand how this whole set up worked, even though it seemed like days had passed on the inside of the chamber that only a few minutes would have passed in the real world. Though she couldn’t be thinking about stuff like that at this moment in time, she had to get stronger otherwise she wouldn’t be able to help the others.

Charging up another ball of energy within her hands she fires it into the endless whiteness that lay before her. Off in the distance she could hear Zhaito and Kura going at it, fighting each other trying to get stronger as well.

“Just a little more” Sandor muttered to herself and she let loose a flurry of kicks into the air followed by some quick punches finishing off with barrage of short energy bursts. Falling down onto her knees again taking in more deep breathes, after being in the chamber for so long she was finally used to the intensified gravity but it still weighed heavy upon her body.

Suddenly Kuji’s voice rang in Sandor’s mind “Sandor your time is up, you need to come out of the time chamber.”

“No I can’t come out” Sandor replied

“But you must” Kuji stated in a very demanding tone “Zhaito and Kura are already on their way out, you must come out as well”

“Look I need just a little more time, I need to. I need to get stronger”

“I know that but we do have a little problem here, the Kwali brothers have shown up”

“Damnit, give me 5 more minutes then I will be ready”

“Ok you have 3 minutes, that gives you 1 more day, and then you have to come out”

“Thanks Kuji, trust me you won’t regret it” With that Sandor went back to her training, she could feel herself getting stronger and stronger by the minute. But the training began to take its toll on her body and she passed out.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* 6 hours later Chamber Time *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Sandor, Sandor you there?” Kuji’s voice boomed across the time chamber.

“Uhhhhhh” Sandor muttered her eyebrows twitching slightly as her mind was being stirred out of its resting state. “I am here” she added as she let out a yawn and started rubbing her eyes.

“Your time is up you must leave the chamber now”

“Ok, ok I am going” Sandor began to wander to the door to the chamber, stretching her body feeling refreshed after the nap. Leaving the chamber Sandor lifted her hands to cover her eyes the sunlight stinging her eyes a bit.

“The other fighters have engaged the Kwali’s, you must also assist them”

“I will” with that a white aura surrounded Sandor and she blasted off into the air and towards the fight. The cold wind blowing against her skin caused Sandor to shudder a bit but before long she was at the fight scene. She noticed that a good portion of the fighters were there, and that some significant blows had been exchanged. Slowly floating down towards the ground, Sandor only had one thing to say. “Hey guys, did you miss me?”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hope that sounds all right to everyone.

[Heald]

Zaito Zhin

[Stand Off]

Zaito and Kura could only watch as Van fell to the ground, seemingly in some kind of trance.
"What's his problem?" Kura snorted. Zaito was about to speak up, but he had let his guard down.
"PIINNNNNKYYYYYY!" roared Kamo as he charged towards Zaito like a massive orange blur. Zaito managed to get an arm up to deflect the blow, but now caught off-guard he was on the defensive.

[Meeting of Powers]

"RAAAAAAAAAAARGH!" Kamo yelled, punching at the retreating Zaito with all of his power. Zaito was surprised, struggling to hold out against the massive power and could only hold his forearms up to guard himself from the punches.

"This is bad," Zaito thought to himself. "This oaf is actually getting stronger for every punch I take!"

It was true, it seemed to be as if he and Zaito were polar opposites: Zaito relied on calm and concentration to maximise his strength and potential, whereas Kamo was getting stronger as he got angrier. It was getting noticeable too; him muscles were growing, his speed was increasing, Zaito could even sense the pure rage coursing through his aura.

Kamo, fed up of trying to break through Zaito's arms, lifted both arms up, preparing to axe-handle Zaito from above. As he clenched his fists together, Zaito saw his opening.
"Bizokaze!" he yelled and as Kamo brought his fists down, it only went through an after-image of Zaito. His anger was briefly replaced by confusion, until he noticed Zaito had reappeared about fifty metres away in front of him.

"COME BACK HERE!"

[The Power of Wind]

Zaito began to power up.

Not this time you ape...now it's my turn.

He put both his hands together, forming a gun shape with his index and middle fingers pressed together stretched out in front of him. As Kamo approached, he began summoning power from within and the air around him into a single point at the end of his outstretched fingers. A miniature vortex the size of a pea began to form where the energy was collecting and just as Kamo's fist was inches away from his face, he yelled,

"Kadoutama (*Vortex Bullet*)!"

An invisible yet powerful explosion of energy struck Kamo right in the chest and sent him jetting at great speed away from Zaito. Zaito charged up ki in his hands and around his body.

"Now it's my turn!"

With incredible speed he shot straight towards the defenceless Kamo and with energy-charged fists, began pummelling at Kamo's head and belly, striking his weak and critical points with deathly accurate blows. Zaito was confident that he was causing the monster some serious pain, for the first time since they had met, Zaito clearly had the upper hand.

Zaito felt Kamo was sufficiently stunned.
"Time to finish this off."
In a split second, he backed off from Kamo, but only to give enough room for a ki-charged upwards kick, striking Kamo with incredible force on his chin, sending him skywards. Zaito then jetted up and past Kamo, gaining considerable distance on him before turning around and jetting back towards the still ascending defenceless Kamo. As he reached Kamo again with tremendous momentum, he locked Kamo's arm and neck in a hold with one arm, locked a leg in a hold with another arm and grabbed his other free arm with his legs. He now had him immobilised and Zaito judged the distance from his position to the ground.
"Hmm...several hundred metres...last time I used this move, I was only ten metres off the ground...I could really build up some serious momentum."

Zaito then used his ki to rotate them and building up wind and speed around them. As they began to pick up speed, they began rotating faster and faster, the wind forming around them until they were no longer visible, instead become a blur within a ferocious tornado. The tip of the tornado began to glow as the speed of their descent increased, shooting towards the ground like a rocket. As they were seconds away from impact, Zaito charged his ki into maintaining maximum momentum.

"RANBOKAZE!" he yelled, and with that they hit the ground with an earth-shaking blast, driving Kamo face first into the earth with enough force to not only break his neck and three of his limbs, but to also create a small crater.

---

Is this the end of Kamo Kwali? Will Kura have similar fortune battling Kados? And what is Van's place in this? The fight continues next time...on Dragonball SU!

[Master of Paradox]

[Van Osiku]

"I had that dream last night. Not sure what I was dreaming of... There was a tower in it, a tower that reached to the sky. I could see in the windows, and people were moving through it. That was the only image in the dream.

"But... It felt like home. I knew it, deep inside, even though I couldn't recognize it. It was my home. I've never felt like that for any place on earth, but I felt like it there.

"Where is it? And how do I find it?"

- Written in Van Osiku's handwriting on a piece of paper found in an abandoned building, South City

Within Van Osiku's mind, he could feel cracks and tears, holes in the wall of his "self". The air was a million colors, and tears poured from his eyes, which went from squeezed shut to wide open every few seconds. Silently, he begged the other voice, the one that had helped him against the aliens on the ocean, for help... but it was silent.

Energy pulsed through him, shattering the air like a thunderclap, and Van realized that this was not a fight he could realistically win.

So he gave up.

A spike of energy tore through the clouds, and Van stood up, throwing his head back.

"Saiiiiiiiiiiiiiyaaaaannnnnnnnnnnnnn!"

For a moment, everyone conscious stopped to look.

Van swayed on his feet, his eyes narrowed. He was a solid foot taller, his hair a dark gray, and his arms crackled with sparks of light. His eyes were focused solely on Kura. After a moment, he pointed to her, unslinging and dropping his satchel.

And then he threw himself at her, and she barely had time to block.

"What the hell are you doing?" she shouted, even as his fists blurred with the force of his strikes. Each hit was blocked, but just barely so, and one opened a cut on her cheek as she managed to only just get her head out of the way.

"You dare to pretend ignorance, Saiyan filth?!?" Van shouted, his voice a far cry from its usual quiet tone. "Everything you've done to my people... You'll pay for it in flesh!"

One hit managed to get through, and the air exploded out of Kura's lungs. Then Van blinked, and he was behind her, his foot coming down hard on her back.

Kura descended, only to find Van waiting for her on the ground. He drove his elbow into her side, sending her back up, where he chopped her across the face. Now he was a single-man whirlwind, sending her up and down with the force of his hands and feet.

Even as she was tossed about by the blows, Kura grabbed out blindly and caught Van's arm. She pulled him in, striking him in the throat, and as he choked she threw him aside. He flew back for a moment, catching himself on the air.

"I don't even know who you are, human," Kura said, rubbing one of her arms. "How could I have done anything to you or 'your people'?"

"You still claim you know nothing?" Van replied, his body shuddering. "That, then, is why I must kill you... So many suffered at Saiyan hands..."

Energy burst from his flesh, and Van threw himself at Kura again. This time she was ready, and her kick met his punch. The air around them blurred, fists and feet weaving around each other as both tried to land their hits.

Van's hand, charged with the energy of Pulse, struck Kura's shoulder at the same time she landed a punch directly to his jaw.

There was a brief explosion, one that sent a ripple effect through the air, snapping everyone out of the confused reverie the fight had induced.

Neither combatant actually looked harmed as they disengaged.

"Ah, yes, the fabled indestrucibility of Saiyans," Van mused, spitting a small bit of blood to the ground. "You're still going to die here, you realize..."

"I still don't have any idea what your problem is," Kura said in response, her fists clenched. "But I have bigger problems that you right now. Get out of my way."
----
In grand DBZ tradition, a fight that would kill ordinary humans has barely marred their outfits. Van's out of control and Kura's got another problem on her hands...

This one's called K-Trance Van. Not as strong as D-Trance, but a lot more talkative.

Man, I hope I didn't get Kura wrong...