My RPG

[chibi cajones]

When the dream-like rushing sensation subsided, Shairo found himself examining his surroundings. He was no longer in the crater of the former RDF base, though he was still being restrained--all be it by an arm rather than a gargantuan hand.

Near him, At was struggling against Shadow Walker's other arm, which he was still able to use enough to restrain the boy despite the critical injury he had taken during his fight with Aro. Shairo held his eyes on the distance of the new environment, knowing that if he saw anyone that was present, his rage and power would likely flare out of control.

Shadow Walker took a moment to gather himself, still weakened from his battle with Aro. When he was confident his captives weren't going anywhere, he gave a somewhat pained call of "Master Clidax."

Shairo kept his eyes fixed on a blank spot, careful to keep the approaching figure out of his sight.

[Wolfstar]

Two quick flashes of light filled Clidax's chamber, one right after the other, revealing the forms of Commando Joe holding Slayer, who did not move at all, and Shadow Walker, back to his normal size, forcing two Earthlings to the floor. All of them looked battle weary, and Shadow Walker appeared as if his hold on the two Earthlings would give out at any minute.

"It seems that the cloaked fool was wrong about you, Shadow Walker. He said that you had joined forces with the United Alliance of Evil. And it seems that you are the only one capable of doing what I sent you all out to do," Clidax picked up his sword and strode over to Shairo and At, both of which were being held against the floor by Shadow Walker. "Very good work, Shadow Walker."

Commando Joe stepped forward to speak, managing the words, "Master... I'm sorry I failed... I..."

Clidax cut him off, shouting, "Be silent you worthless dog! I will get to you when I decide you deserve my attention and not a moment sooner!"

"As for you two..." he said as he looked down at the prisoners. "I have a propisition to make. I heard about the fusions that stood to defeat the Hermalyan Empire, and I thought that having them on my side would be most advantageous for everyone involved. Join me and I offer to you the full protection of the Klidorian Army. Earth will never have to worry about agressive invasion again and I will even leave you with a degree of self governing. Is this acceptable?"

[chibi cajones]

Shairo had a hard time keeping his eyes from locking on the one called Clidax.

"It sounds pretty nice," He said, his voice even, though with a slight hint of strain, "But your methods make me wonder... why didn't you just stop by and congratulate us and show a little... courtesy? And while we're at it... you seem a bit harsh to your underlings when they have trouble with a task that I wouldn't risk in your position. Of course, I doubt you want me questioning your methods, so I wouldn't be worth the trouble, would I?"

At seemed to be gazing at the ground with what looked like a forlorn expression. He was no longer struggling, his eyes occasionally drifting up to watch Clidax's composure, but his focus seemed to be elsewhere.

Shairo chanced a glance in At's direction, most muscles in his face tightening as he did. He then turned back to looking into the distance, a flash of Clidax's sword crossing the corner of his eye in the process.

[chibi cajones]

Kejek held out his wand, scanning the trees for any sign of movement.

"He ran away," Goten observed, leaning against another tree, "And... it looks like the other one's gone too."

"Shai...ro?" Kairin focused, searching for power levels on the planet.

"Wait... how did that happen?" Dende said, alarmed. The air around Kairin was starting to crackle with electricity. Katar... Shairo... what was going on?

"I don't mean to bother, but could you explain?" Videl asked.

"Aro... he had the other warrior defeated," Dende explained, "And the United Alliance of Evil decided to give him a boost... and Aro went all out and... had him... but... somehow he still got captured."

"Umm, do you think Pan and Anoreha might need some help?" Goten broke in, "Even if we come up with a plan... Pan is the only person here who knows instant moving."

A shadow drew over the horizon, quickly descending toward the trees between Pan and Anoreha and the others.

"Elohssa?" Shaoten said in uncertainty.

"I'd say the hair's a dead giveaway," Kyu agreed.


Had Elohssa been anyone else at that moment, he would have emitted a low growl of annoyance. Instead, he stood completely still. He had been useless in the battle--not only that, but at the expense of another. It seemed more than a little suspicious that the dragon had lured him away from the battle; even more that it disappeared just as the battles on the Earth were drawing to their ends. Not only that, but with the major drops in energy when Aro defused and Shadow Walker lost power, Elohssa couldn't track where they had gone. He could only hope that the others knew more than he; there was much to be done.


**********

"What sort of warriors they are is unimportant," Darkonda said to the image of Lord Zedd in the Dark Fortress view, "What matters is that we can defeat them if we attack together." Red light filled the view around Zedd, seeming to immonate from his visor.

"Monark of evil, eh?" Zedd said, the light still present, "Maybe you should have your scanners checked! The alien forces may have departed, but there is someone else watching the battle... and if I'm correct, his powers are immense. And it seems those warriors you are so eager to fight keep growing in number." The red light was gone, leaving the image as it was, other than Zedd shifting his stance slightly and raising his staff commandingly. "You can waste your forces on an attack here; I have more important things that require my attention."

"I believe you are forgetting who you're talking to," Darkonda said in the same tone he had held throughout the conversation, "I am now the one with the power!"

"This bickering will only lead to your targets escaping and my plans being delayed," Zedd stated, "Call it an attack to gauge their abilities; if they are destroyed, all the better! But I will take no part in it today. Good bye!" Red light then engulfed the image and it faded away.

"Your rashness will be your undoing," Ecliptor said to Darkonda, "You can think quickly, but without order to your thoughts; your cunning is matched only by your blindness!"

**********


O.O. That ended poorly. Umm... I don't know what else to do at the moment, so nya.

[chibi cajones]

The noise in the tavern wasn't exceedingly great, though it was louder than it had been around twenty years before, before the Hermalyan empire had stretched to encumpass so much of the centerpiece of the northern quadrant. There was a variety of creatures throughout the tavern, some reasonably humanoid while others were more like insects or anthropomorphized tentacles, some sitting at tables and others at the bar, some playing games with circular cards while others just sat and drank and chatted. News of the fall of Cort had already spread to Onyx, along with rumors that the Klidorian army had taken the battle as an act of war against MemKarostlous.

MemKarostlous, the mysterious Unifier of another realm. Talk of the Unifier was getting more common at the crossroads of evil, as his followers had a tendency to be responsible for much of the resurge in activity on the dusty planet of Onyx--some his followers, some soldiers, many random villains caught in the crossfire. The subject of MemKarostlous couldn't be banned from the tavern, but it could still start the occasional fight when an exiled monster protested the acts of the Unifier's underlings.

Today, though, the talk of the Unifier had nothing to do with his goals, but his followers--those who thought themselves saved by bringing destruction upon those that would stand against him. And of course, they all had come to know the names of Cyba and Trunks, certainly after the events on Hermalya a few days earlier. But Cyba was dead--or so they thought, and the rumor was that Clidax was dealing with Trunks in the present. This is why the image of the lavender-haired half-saiyan caused the Hermalyan bandit Nijam to jump to his feet, the OnyxJuiceSpecial that he had been drinking flashing to the ground and leaving a mess that an ant-like attendant quickly came to try and clean.

"A one-sided illusion," the image of Trunks said to Nijam, "Everyone else in this room sees me as someone looking very similar to you, Nijam. Perhaps we should sit down before they assume there's sibbling rivlary in the works." Nijam made a soft growl, his eyes narrowing, then he sat again, the image of trunks fading into an exact duplicate of Nijam, down to the bump that had formed on his head from the punch he had received from Shaoten on Earth.

The shapeshifter took a seat, placing a stack of circular cards on the table.

"What are you up to?" Nijam demanded, "I'm tired of all of these games."

"Take some cards and act like you're playing," the shapeshifter answered in Nijam's voice, "It'll help divert attention from us." Nijam's eyes showed his irritation as he drew three cards and the shapeshifter placed the deck in the middle of the table, drawing three of his own and flipping through them.

"I've heard that our old friend Cyba is back among the living," the shapeshifter said casually, "But a little held up."

"What do you know?" Nijam asked, suppressing his annoyance, having a hard time not adding his other question.

"It would be very surprising if he doesn't show up some time soon," the shapeshifter continued, "Probably around someone from his family. But if he doesn't... it won't hurt our plans at all."

"So why tell me?" Nijam asked.

"Just suggesting that you keep your eyes opened," the shapeshifter said, placing a card on the table, "I think I've got a good hand."

Nijam scowled and put out a card. The shapeshifter smirked and took both, dealing out two more cards to Nijam and himself.

"I'm sure you remember Gotenks," the shapeshifter continued, "So far he's done very well at falling into traps and getting out of them."

"I hope you didn't come here to gloat," Nijam said, shuffling his cards irritably, "I enjoy the luxury trip, but I know you aren't here to make my life easier."

"Smart man," the shapeshifter said, his copy of Nijam's eyes hinting at amusement as Nijam put out a card. The Shapeshifter looked through his cards, holding them up so that he could fain focus. He then put down two cards, putting the rest of his hand on his edge of the table. Nijam gave an irritated sigh and took the cards.

"I guess you win then," the shapeshifter said, pulling a palm-sized green crystal from somewhere under the table and sliding it to Nijam. Nijam took it, his gaze locking on the shapeshifter's disguised copy.

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"I want you to hold onto that crystal," the shapeshifter answered. Then, leaning closer and talking more quietly, he added, "If you can without dying."

"I prefer being a fighter to being a puppet," Nijam said, "Why should I put myself in danger to protect this thing?" He held the crystal in his hand, prepared to test its strength in his fist.

"And for reference, you probably shouldn't squeeze it," the shapeshifter said, "at least not in here. Don't worry; this won't take too long."

The shapeshifter then got up and headed for the door, passing a table where a fin-headed creature was trying to get a cloaked figure to play cards, and disappearing out the tavern door.


*****

... Drawn out.

[Wolfstar]

"Wow... that took care of my wounds better than a Saiyan Revitalization potion," Cyba said as the last bits of green energy swirled around him, latching on to his few remaining scratches and becoming new flesh. "Is that what you meant when you said I did not even know the extent of Chaos Energy's powers?"

"Exactly," Enerjak replied, standing up and motioning for Cyba to do the same. "You are a quick learner though, I must admit."

Cyba inspected himself more closely, poking his flesh where wounds had been before giving an excited half laugh. "That's amazing! Why does it only work in the Chaos Dimension?" he asked as he followed Enerjak's instruction to stand.

"The Chaos Dimension has a much, much greater concentration of Chaos Energy than anything else in the universe. You wouldn't know it, but that took a lot of pure Chaos Energy from the surroundings and pieced you back together. If there would be a high enough concentration of Chaos Energy anywhere besides this dimension, you can be assured that the life of that world would be extinguished, even down to a microbial level."

"Yeah, that could be a problem. Too bad I couldn't just teleport here in the middle of a battle every time I needed to do something like that. I bet it would confuse my opponent if I did." Cyba's stomach rumbled, but the Saiyan pretended like he hadn't noticed. "So, back to training?"

Enerjak gave a bit of a laugh. "I was thinking lunch, actually. I work up an appetite while fighting, especially against a Chaotic, even if it is one as weak as you. Come, I will show you something amazing, something even you could never dream of." Cyba followed closely as Enerjak lifted off the ground. The two of them covered a vast distance in little time, but the sight that loomed on the horizon shocked Cyba.

"That tree... I've heard of it before. Or something very close to it!" he said as he stopped in midflight. Enerjak also stopped to look back at Cyba.

"Oh? It has many names. Tree of the Fruit of the gods, The Undying Fruit, even the Tree of Might. Where did you hear about this?" Enerjak questioned. "I was not aware they could grow outside the Chaos Dimension."

"There was a man that stopped by the Saiyan Space Colony many years ago named... Tulluce. I think," Cyba recalled, rubbing his chin slightly. "I wasn't born yet at this time, but I remember one of the researchers mentioning it to me when I... was still being experimented on. If I remember right, no planet can sustain the tree and still sustain any other life. Does the Chaos Energy here allow it to grow and not destroy everything?"

"Yes, and one piece of fruit can last all day on an average day," Enerjak told Cyba as they resumed their flight, but at a slower pace. "However, with the energy output we are going to be experiencing, we should probably harvest several pieces. Outside the Chaos Dimension, a piece of the Tree of Might would have a similar effect as a senzu bean, but would also supply an additional boost in power. It might be a good idea to bring a piece with you when you go back to your realm."

[Wolfstar]

The sword in Clidax's hand went to Shairo's throat, a scowl displayed on the Klidorian's face. "I gave you a chance. If your power will not serve me, it will serve Terra Dax instead. He hungers... I can feel it." Shairo showed no fear on his face, but Clidax didn't think that would last long. Instead of making a move instantly to have them brought to Terra Dax, Clidax turned his attention to At. "Am I to assume your answer is the same as his?"

[chibi cajones]

At inhaled deeply, saying nothing for a long moment. Then he tightly closed his eyes.

"Terra... Dax..." He took another sharp breath and looked up at Clidax. "I can't help you."

[Wolfstar]

Clidax growled and split the floor with his sword once more. "Joe! Don't speak to me, just give me the Gem of Despair!" The Klidorian warrior opened his mouth as if he were going to reply, but remembered the first half of the command and closed it once again. He took his free hand that was not holding Slayer and pulled out the dark purple and black gem and tossed it into Clidax's outstretched hand.

"Into the Gem of Despair," Clidax said as the two of them were sucked into the gem. "Shadow Walker, I'm sending you to stasis. You did well." Clidax passed his hand over the warrior, teleporting him to a stasis chamber held elsewhere in the tower. "And now, Commando Joe... tell me why you failed."

"Sir... I fought against two powerful Saiyans... and the United Alliance of Evil arrived on Earth. Slayer had already been defeated and I did not want to leave him there to possibly be damaged furthur. I thought returning to regroup would be the best course of action, sir."

Clidax rested his hand on the hilt of his sword, which was still stuck in the polished stone floor. "You came back with only minor wounds. When Blot returned, he was nearly dead. I should feed you to Terra Dax as well. However, you brought Slayer back as well, and he did fight valiantly."

"What orders do you have for me, sir?" Commando Joe asked feebly. Clidax lifted the sword from the ground and hefted it onto his shoulder.

"Prepare the tower for launch. Take Slayer to a Re-energization chamber first." Commando Joe bowed, then set out to do as he was told.

***

"What's this theory of yours?" Trunks asked Atomic Blast Man as they jumped up to the second level of the temple to avoid Terra Dax's thrashing tail.

"See those priests down there? They are still channeling energy into Terra Dax. If we can stop that, maybe we can weaken this beast enough to actually fight him," he replied. "It's risky, and it might not work... but like I said, it's a theory."

"Much more than what we had to go off of at any rate," Trunks told him, building up energy in both of his hands. He pulled his right hand back, ready to throw the blast he built in that hand when he saw space bend slightly at Terra Dax's feet, revealing two of the warriors he had seen briefly during the initial invasion of the Hermalyan Army on Earth. "They feel weakened. We can't leave them down there for Terra Dax to smash!"

[chibi cajones]

Shairo didn't move. Even when he found his eyes confronted with the image of the beast, he didn't move to look away.

"Hurry," He said simply, "Try to use thought-speak if you can get far enough into a morph." At's eyes were closed, and there were traces of copper scales forming along his face as his hair started to meld into... something else.

<Yabu!>

The call was almost a scream, and being in undead form and hit with such a call was more than enough to cause Yabu to look around in surprise. Once he realized what was happening, however, Yabu took the hint and again took flight, this time flying straight at Terra Dax. Yabu brought his hands in front of his eyes as though he was holding a pair of binoculars, and released energy from both his hands and his eyes that combined into one powerful burst. Yabu was then struck with a force that was unlike anything he had ever experienced, but the attack still struck its target: the middle of Terra Dax's left eye. Yabu then found himself experiencing something that he hadn't known since before he had been killed in the destruction of Planet Vegeta: unconsciousness.

[Wolfstar]

Gotenks leaned back just in time for the crystal to pass in front of him, the side of the Esrevni device nearly scraping his nose. He cast a scowl over at Ioru as he stood back up to his full height. "Hey! That's why I told you not to interfere! Just stay back and let me fight my fight! I don't need anyone meddling and getting in my way."

Captain Krysalor also moved his head over to Ioru after watching the crystal absorb a large stone that was knocked from the ceiling from before he entered the room. "Esrevni storage crystals, eh bub? That makes you dangerous!" Krysalor held his fist out, projecting a blast at Ioru that held plenty of power behind it. Aldran threw his fist out in front of it, punching it down the hallway the Klidorian warrior had come from, causing the unlooking Hermalyan stock troops to panic.

"We need to get out of here!" one of them shouted as he turned and ran. The rest soon followed suit, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire between the super powers that battled inside the tiny room.

"I'm getting kind of claustrophobic!" Krysalor shouted as he grabbed Gotenks by the head and jumped through the hole in the ceiling. Halfway into the room above, Krysalor threw Gotenks against the ceiling above, but the Saiyan did not stay there much beyond the impact. Gotenks pushed off the ceiling with his hands and met Krysalor in midair with a fierce kick, launching the Klidorian toward the wall on the far side of the large room they found themselves in. Krysalor crashed through many antiquated machines, causing a few minor explosions before he struck the wall Gotenks kicked him towards.

Gotenks landed in between two large devices, gathering a ball of energy in his right hand that hovered above his palm. Krysalor crashed through them, striking Gotenks in the chest and heaving him back, but as he was knocked back, Gotenks threw his gathered energy at the Klidorian, striking him full in the chest...

... But it had no effect. "Hahahahah! I was hoping you would try something like that." The energy from the blast traveled from Krysalor's chest and into his hands, which he threw in front of him, aiming directly at Gotenks. The beam was focused, punching through the wall behind Gotenks and causing a few more explosions next to him, but never struck him.

"Man, that would have punched right through me," Gotenks muttered. "No more energy blasts." A smirk spread across his face. "That's fine... I can take him the old fashioned way." Gotenks leapt after Krysalor, hitting him with a series of punches and kicks that caused a grunt of pain from each hit.

"Good... yes, good," Krysalor said as Gotenks pulled back for a second, streching his arm with a cocky smirk in his face. "But not enough just yet!" Krysalor punched Gotenks in the jaw, then reached back with his other arm and grabbed the Saiyan by the hair, pulling him into another punch aimed at his forehead. Krysalor did not let go after the blow made contact, but before the next strike could land, Aldran kicked his legs out from under him, knocking him over and forcing him to release Gotenks.

"Damn it," Gotenks said as he brushed himself off and stood up to his full height. Energy began to pour into the Saiyan as he charged his energy inside him. "I told you not to interfere!" To accentuate his point, he drove his fist savagely into Krysalor, tossing him back as if he weighed next to nothing and cracking the crystaline skin of his chest. "I don't need your damned help."

"You will in just a second," Krysalor told his opponent as he came back to his feet and charged energy into his hands. "Because I'd say I'm plenty warmed up now. And bub, you've pissed me off."

[Wolfstar]

Pahn moved her arms in a circular motion, working out the sore kinks that had formed in her muscles during the battle. "Wow, I haven't gotten a workout like that in a while," she said as she gently knuckled the few forming bruises she had received in the fight.

Anoreha's hair fell back completely as she fell out of her Super Saiyan form. "Yes, it was a good fight." She felt out with her senses, detecting a few warriors grouped together a short distance off. "We're not done yet, not by a long shot. We need a plan, and I think the other people over there might be interested in joining in."

"Sounds like a party," Pahn said sarcastically as she lifted off the ground and headed toward Dende and the others, with Anoreha falling in close behind. "Any idea where our husbands are?"

"Trunks was taken into that Gem of Despair," Anoreha replied, "and Cyba did not return after the wish. Do you think he was unable to come back to life for some reason?"

"The only thing I can think of would be a technicality from his death, but that shouldn't be. We worded the wishes carefully. Knowing him, he went off to fight the head honcho by himself though," Pahn told her with a bit of a smile. "I don't think we should be worrying about Cyba or Trunks, actually. They are both powerful enough to take care of those Klidorian punks."

[Wolfstar]

"Listen, we don't have to be enemies," Gohan said, his voice even despite the effort he exerted to keep Miliardo trapped. "We can fight together, like the people of the Earth should be doing against the constant threats that seem to come from the Unifyer's underlings."

Miliardo said nothing for a moment as he stopped struggling against Gohan's holding. "How can I forgive myself though? I've killed innocents, people that depended on me to save them. How can I just go back and pretend like everything is alright?"

"By taking it one day at a time," Gohan replied, using the Elemental Rings to pull the stone casing away from Miliardo, who fell to his knees against the lavarock beneath him. Gohan stretched out his hand, offering to help him up. "We can fight Clidax together and set this all back as it should be. And from there... we will protect the Earth and everyone else that wants refuge from the Unifyer."

Miliardo did not look up at Gohan, but after a few moments, he moved his hand up to Gohan's extended one, accepting the help to stand. "I'll go with you to confront Clidax. I think it is about time I got the answers I want."

"I don't think the other Elemental Rings are here on Tecarlin anymore," Calcutro said as he landed lightly behind Gohan.

"How can you tell?" Gohan asked, turning toward the cyborg warrior.

"We Tecarlins are tied to the Elemental Rings, and some of us can roughly sense them. I can not pinpoint a location, I can just tell when they are moved as long as they stay on the planet. I felt the ring of fire move and then felt then felt both rings just... vanish."

Gohan sighed, but not loudly. "Well, that eliminates the rest of the search for now. And it seems like not a moment too soon, either, for we are needed elsewhere. Will you be coming with us?"

"I cannot," Calcutro told Gohan slowly. "I believe my place is here with the people. They will need a new ruler, and this time I aim to make sure it is not a corrupt one like Rictran."

Gohan nodded, showing that he understood the reasoning and put a hand on Calcutro's robotic shoulder. "It was great seeing you again, old friend. Hopefully next time we will not be in the middle of a crisis."

[chibi cajones]

Though Yabu had bought some time, TerraDax was still ready to give attention to the two Earthlings at his feet.

"Take cover," Shairo said to At, keeping his tone even and serious. He suddenly threw out an arm, causing At in mid morph to fly across the room. Shairo didn't have to look up to notice the hand that was about to bear down on him. He didn't move any further. He simply let the power surge out once more as his hair spiked up and took on the overused golden blond color as the terquoise in his eyes sharpened to a piercing glow. It was far from enough, but he stood his ground, waiting for the right moment.

When the monster moved, Shairo blasted forward, aiming directly for the creature's abdomen. He was too slow, however, and found a mind numbing pain issuing from his left leg just before his face smashed into the floor. Shairo struggled to keep his energy at its maximum, fighting the pain from the indirect attack. He was lucky to be alive; checking the status of his leg was a luxury he couldn't aford.

Shairo threw his hands behind him--up toward Terra Dax--and shouted as gold and white energy poured out from him. It was an awkward position, one that was difficult to maintain an energy flow through, but at this point it was the quickest effort he could make, however futile.

Shairo managed to lift his head enough to catch a flash of color near one of Terra Dax's feet. Though incredibly quick, the warriors present had more than enough experience in observation to make out the cobra had it not just struck from the shadows and sank its fangs into the first vulnerable spot it could reach on Terra Dax's body.


*******

I'm not happy with this post. >.<. Yes, TerraDax just got bit by a King Cobra. Not the most venomous snake in the world, but has the power to use the most venom at once... hence my choice. It can kill an Asian Elephant in 3 hours, so I'd say TerraDax is by no means down... but depending on stuff (is the fighting increasing the rate of the poison? Or is Terra Dax just that big and powerful that it's still slowed?), we've got anywhere from an hour to a couple days of still-kick-ass-so-no-ease in store... but maybe the tides can turn?

[edit] Attack his leg! It should be a weakpoint now![/edit]

[Wolfstar]

I think at this point we need to figure out where the other two groups are going to move around to, if they are in fact going to move. I think Pahn and Anoreha are heading to Klidore for sure.