“All hands on deck! Prepare for the final jump!” Uriel’s voice rang out. The bridge was a hive of activity, and no doubt, her voice was carrying throughout the entire ship. After making her announcement, and assured that they were following her orders, she came over to me.
“I must admit, your friend, Jolly Roger is a real genius.” She said to me, and I didn’t disagree. She really was a genius. Uriel was constantly shocked at just how fast we were going. Each jump was made with near perfect accuracy, which meant the downtime between jumps was minimal at best.
“I know she is.” I decided to answer with, catching Uriel somewhat off-guard. Though, she recovered quickly enough.
“Right? Anyway, from what we’ve gathered, the Freedom Coalition has already begun their assault on Elysium. I would have figured that you’d be more concerned about your crew.”
I simply shrugged. “They're capable, and with Jake, Fera, and Baron assisting, it would be strange if something went wrong.” Though, that was assuming none of them tried anything, and at this point, I couldn’t say if they would or not. Uriel watched me for some sign of unease or anything really. Only, once she found none did she smile.
“Is that so? I must admit, your faith in your crew is admirable.”
“It is what it is.” I replied back, not too concerned with her thoughts. She looked at me again before taking up her position, making the final checks before our final jump.
I was ready to go. Since leaving REECE, I have been training and healing. Now, now I am back at full capacity. Everyone else was good and ready to go, though, the Saiyan teenagers hadn’t yet unlocked Super Saiyan, not that I thought they would. They had developed a lot since we left, but nowhere close to what was needed to realize where they wanted to be. Still, with their numbers and average strength, I had no doubt they could easily handle any kind of threat we may face.
Still, I wasn’t expecting much. We’ll just pop in, overwhelm the enemy force, get together, then figure out what we’re going to do afterwards. At least, that’s what I wanted to happen. I mean, really, how bad could it be?
“Brace for Jump!” Uriel cried out. Everyone either buckled themselves in or prepared themselves. Everyone important was already on the bridge, so we’d all see the situation as soon as we arrive. It also helped since we didn’t have to find everyone.
With bated breath, we waited. The ship vibrated and hummed. A keening howl filled the ship. All signs that the jump drive was engaging. Jolly Roger’s ship was much smaller, but The Ark was absolutely massive. A floating city at the minimum. Having such a large ship do jumps took a lot of effort and preparations.
The moment, we jumped. Everyone felt it. The feeling of getting punched, followed by an odd disconnect. Like a part of you was left behind. Like a fraction of your being was spread over countless miles like jam on toast. Then, it all comes crashing back. Snapping back into place with an audible snap.
Even used to it, I shudder. Taking in a shaky breath and closing my eyes to center myself. I let out a slow exhale and opened my eyes. Only to stare bewildered.
A mass of ships, no, clumps of ships were spread throughout the area, and more ships were surrounding them attempting to destroy them. More ships were maneuvering around the planet, no doubt the RON capital world, Elysium. None of this made sense.
The more I looked, the more damning the situation. “Well, that’s disappointing.” I muttered, breaking the silence. Alarms rang out, people moved to take up stations. Clearly, our arrival had caught their attention. Even with our payload, being hundreds of Saiyans, we were still a single ship against numerous others.
If we played this bad, we could lose the ship. Not to mention, that the more I looked over the battle, the more I saw just how bad of a situation it was. Playing it safe, we could slowly extricate allied ships from their battles. Slowly gathering up momentum until we sweep in and take everything back.
I didn’t think that would work well. Individually, I could probably break through the blockade above Elysium, but… I might take some damage unless we can create an opening. Slow and steady might be best, but…
“Uriel, can we contact anyone?” I asked, just to be sure.
“No! The lines are all garbled and a mess, though the open broadcast is still an option.”
That was a hard no. Not if I wanted to coordinate people. Making an open broadcast stating I was here to help would only make things worse. I glanced over to our gathering of people, but oddly, Devi was the one to speak up.
“I think I could help.” Since she had joined us on the ship, along with Cook and company, she had sequestered herself away. Locking herself in a room and slowly digesting the power she was getting from me. I could feel something had changed in her, but what exactly, I wasn’t sure.
“How?” I directly stated.
She frowned for a moment and only then she spoke slowly and carefully. “I believe, that… right. I’m a very popular idol here, inside of RON. Normally, that doesn’t mean much. Not really, but… with your power, and with my improved strength gained through our contract. I might be able to leverage that. Essentially causing those within the enemy forces to temporarily be bewitched by me. Thus, causing chaos in their ranks.”
I don’t think she was fully explaining what doing that entails, based on the growing frown on her face. If this worked, it would help massively, regardless of the cost. I needed to preserve as much as my fleet as possible for what was to come. Not to mention… something was happening on the planet, and I had a feeling I needed to be there.
The only issue was, knowing how the Majin’s mark worked… I suspected letting Devi do her thing would be like opening Pandora’s Box. Then again, our presence was likely going to be like oil on fire regardless. Still, if I cared about minimalizing casualties or losses accrued by those not within my fleet, it would probably be better if we didn’t do that.
As it stands though… “Very well, I’ll trust you to do that.” She nods and runs to Uriel, likely to coordinate with her to make it happen. I tuned that out and focused on those behind and beside me. Vega, and the kids.
“Vega.” I spoke to her, she looked back, eagerly awaiting my command. “I need you to help the kids and the Saiyan clones. I’ll be going ahead while the enemy fleet is in chaos to see what the hell is going down on the planet.”
“I won’t let you down sister.” Vega replied, the kids called back all agreeing.
“Good.” I nodded to each of them, only to stop on Seri. “Seri, come here.” She did so without question. Eagerly walking before me. Without a word I placed my hand on her head. Before she could even question what it was I was doing, I pushed my ki into her. I felt something change. Her power grew and expanded. Changing into the same ki I had. Only after making sure what I did wasn’t going to cause her serious issues did I lift my hand.
“You’ll need that. The power boost is temporary, but it should last you through the fight.” I suspected I could do it, so seeing that I could, well, it raised a lot of interesting questions. Radda could achieve god ki through a ritual. It might be possible for a normal Saiyan to do so, but there had to be a hard limit, otherwise we would have figured it out by now. Then again, I wasn’t too keen on borrowed power. Seeing that Seri was still enamored with her new power, I looked to the kids.
“I trust you all to look after the future of our race, is that understood?” I questioned and each of them replied with a hearty, ‘YES!’ Only Seri was silent. I ignored that and started to walk away, my mind churning with possibilities, when Seri called out late.
“I understand, Mother!” I froze mid-step. I felt as if the whole bridge had gone silent. Every eye turned to watch me. My own tail that always swayed behind me went still. Seri’s words rang in my head, over and over. I felt strange. A pain in my heart, a suffocating warmth. A smile made its way on my face even still. I continued walking forward as if I hadn’t stopped. Letting the moment still until I reached the door.
I swallowed. Doing my best to keep my voice calm and assured. “I hope you do, daughter.” And I left. The moment the door shut behind me, I practically ran. Ignoring the gathered crew, I went for the nearest hangar and threw myself out into the void of space.
Hopefully Devi’s plan works, and I probably should have coordinated more, but… I’m sure it’ll be fine…
…
…What the hell am I even thinking? Of course, whatever Devi’s going to do is just going to make things so much worse… Fucking hell…
With that, she continued to fly to her destination. Elysium.
On the bridge of The Ark, a quick stage had been made. Devi, using her magic changed into her idol outfit. Projectors and camera’s were set up to broadcast her appearance and words on the open broadcast for all to see. Devi took in a nice breath. Readied herself. Only then did she nod to Uriel. Fingers went up. Counting down. Then, the broadcast began.
All across the system, every single ship's sensors pinged the new incoming broadcast. Every soul took a moment to look at it, knowing that it was coming from the new unidentified ship. Allies? Enemies? Neither side was too sure, but when they opened the broadcast, friend or foe, it didn’t matter. Every single one of them was stumped.
A cutesy pose, a twist, a turn, a bump of her hips. “This is Devi! Your super favorite up and coming universally famous idol, DEVI!” nobody knew what to say. Or, really what to do. It was just so, out there that everyone just kind of stared instead of shutting off the broadcast or anything else. Which, was a mistake.
Already, she was using her power. Flexing it in an insidious way. It was costly, and the backlash would be harsh. Effectively, she was using every minor contract, or every possible connection she had with everyone in the broadcast and indiscriminately giving them a command.
“I’m here to preach love and peace! The Freedom Coalition should stand down and cease hostilities right this instant!” Her voice held an odd allure. Yet, for the majority of people who didn’t know who she was, the answer was…
“Seriously? Who the hell is that girl? She thinks she can just end this conflict like that? We’re fighting for our future, against tyrannical government!” A captain yelled out. Totally ignorant of the way some of his surrounding crew were looking at her.
Other places, it wasn’t the captains, but the normal soldiers. Laughing or scoffing while their captain or those in important positions zoned out.
“In order to further promote love and peace! I’ll sing my newest single! Right here and now!”
At this one captain scoffed. Even as she began singing. “Cut the damn broadcast already, we have a war to win.” Except, it wasn’t cut. “You lot listening to me!? We don’t have time to listen to a little tart dancing and singing! People are relying on us!”
Eerily, those bewitched turned to look at their captain. Like zombies they spoke. “Devi, wants us to stop hostilities.”, “Love and Peace.”, “Must, end… fighting.”
Every second the music played was a constant push on all their minds. Pushing them, brainwashing them. Internally however, they screamed out. Raged against what was happening. Captains drew their weapons and shot their crew. Crew mutinied. Explosions rocked the Freedom Coalitions fleet. The entire fleet collapsing in on itself. Only made worse by the sudden intrusion of hundreds of Saiyans punching through the now wrecked lines with contemptible ease. Smashing into ships and killing those inside or simply smashing them into wrecks.
Every second, Devi felt a horrendous pain. Power being stripped from her. The only reason she hadn’t outright died due to breaking or abusing so many minor contracts was due to both her contract with Rettas, which held a far greater weight and also, because she was a half-demon. Even then, every second that passed, those contracts, what little hold she held over them burned away rapidly.
Still, it would last just long enough to finish her song, and then… well, it wouldn’t be her problem anymore…
Using the opening, Rettas did what came naturally. Flying through the shattered fleet, she aimed for the surging energy she could feel. Down below she saw a figure surrounded by an ocean of blood. She simply charges down and at the last second hit her with a powerful kick, sending her to the earth. Even then, she wasn’t satisfied…
It was too easy. Getting here was almost too easy. The vampire had also taken my hit, but wasn’t hurt, not really. Like she had allowed herself to get hit. A trap? Something more? I wasn’t sure. But next thing I knew, the vampire moved again, blood swarmed and bubbled. Dog sized bats burst out, each containing a horrific amount of energy. Bailey was alive, though she looked tired. I couldn’t sense Aspa. The kids were scattered about, and I was having trouble finding anyone else of importance. Like there was a shroud over the planet.
I almost didn’t hear when Bailey cried out my name, but when she came by my side and spoke, “I can help deal with the bats.” I could sense that she really wanted too. I didn’t really need the help, but… with how FUBAR, or rather, how fucked up beyond all recognition this situation was, I figured having her help wouldn’t be a bad thing.
In the end, I nodded. My eyes flicked down below to the growing chaos there. Right, lets end this quick before more variables come into play. “I’m going down, watch my back.” I stated and left before she could even respond. Simply trusting her to follow me lead. Trust that paid out finely.
The bats all glowed crimson and surged towards me, only to be intercepted by pinpoint blasts of ki that had them exploding violently. Suicide bats, wonderful… With Bailey supporting me, I easily punched down to the center of the blood ocean, right into the vampire’s face. She grinned, baring her teeth in a macabre sight. Showing off a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.
It felt, a little too theatric. I didn’t flinch back. Merely continuing forward. The blood around her surged. Lances of blood shot out, seeking to impale me. My own ki responded almost ravenously. Crimson hands shot out, each one being impaled on the lances, only to grip them and snap them with ease. Opening a path for me to charge in. I hadn’t gone Super Evil Saiyan Blue, not yet, not with how that form worked. I needed longevity over power right now.
Still, as I was, it was enough. A final barrier of blood formed before me, but it broke under my might. She tried to shift away, but with a twist my tail slammed into her side. The vampire went flying, not without half their body being obliterated. Then again, they recovered almost instantly. The surrounding blood swirled and repaired her, putting a small dent in her admittedly sizeable reserves.
Still, if this continued, I think I could put her down sooner than later. It wouldn’t be too hard. Of course, the moment I thought that, I sensed another signature. A very oddly familiar signature. Out of the hole the vampire had made when I crashed into her, a figure cloaked in darkness burst up. They came so fast that I couldn’t react beyond blocking. The blow sent me flying. The force behind it made my bones shake and crack.
I hit the ground and rolled up. I ducked and barely avoided another strike. I maneuvered forward, blocking and diverting another blow. Flexing my power, I sent forward a fist will all I had, Crimson ki rippled along my fist. The moment I hit the figure, I felt like I had punched a mountain. An explosion pushed us both back. My feet dug into the ground. My opponent, fell to their knee. Their shroud faded, exposing their form.
“Arms!?” I exclaimed in shock. The man, the four-armed menace from back in the tournament stood. A manic grin on his face, his eyes glowing like a predator that saw prey. And, I was the prey. I could see, on his chest, a massive mark of a stylized, ‘M’ showcasing what I already suspected. He had taken the Majin’s power.
“I didn’t take you for a loser who would use another’s power.” I snapped out. Hearing those words, Arms went ballistic.
“How else am I supposed to catch up to you!? You promised me a fight, a battle that would take me to the brink, and you let me down!!!” He cried out. And suddenly, I realized… once more, this was karma coming right back around. He’d sold his soul for power, and yet… was that so wrong?
I could feel that was rearing up for a long-winded justification, but… I didn’t need one, nor did he. “You’re right.” I said simply standing tall. “I never did show you my all, now? Now, I’ll give it to you, if you can handle it. That is.”
It was the least I owed him. My words cut him off. His body shuddered. A clarity went through his eyes. Banishing that growing madness. Only to fade entirely when he grinned. His mark glowed ominously, his energy surging.
“With this power, I can handle anything.” He boasted. In response, I took up my own stance. Wondering, could he?
