A/N: Good news guys: I'm finally free of my after school commitment! However I must warn you, I am a procrastinator and with Bioshock Infinite around the corner, I'll probably be spending some time on that as well ^^'.

On the upside I at least have a few more chapters planned out and am getting the general feel for this story.

Oh a small note. Earlier on I made a reference to power levels… big mistake on my part. I am by no means an expert with power levels nor do I think I will ever be. Due to this, I will be sticking to a personal arbitrary scale. If you wish to know where someone stands, feel free to say so in a review or PM me.

And now a big announcement: It has been one year since my start at ! In celebration of this (and some coincidence) this chapter is super long and will be my longest to date!

Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z or Dragon Ball GT. Rights for songs suggested go to their respected owners.

Claimer: I own this plot and any original characters.

WARNING: Dark chapter.

Chapter 8

Swordsman of the East

[BGM: Hans Zimmer: A Fire Will Rise]

Two months since V-Day.

It wasn't fair. None of it was fair. Especially because he couldn't understand why it was all happening. All the Big People, especially his mommy, seemed really scared of something and all began to scream and run away from one of the really big houses that went into the sky.

This made no sense to him, little, three-year-old Billy Parsons, who was nothing more than your average child had started off his day in excitement. Mommy had to go get more of the green paper from one of the big, prettier, houses and then promised that she would take him to the toy store to get him a new toy, any toy he wanted!

They had walked down the street with all the Big People in their nice clothes, most talking on the plastic talk box like Mommy, and going somewhere specific without paying him a glance. Billy had only been to the city once before, but even now he looked in awe at those gigantic, slim houses where everyone went to go work with white paper and talk to more important Big People get some more green paper. At least that was what Mommy had said.

However, this trip to South City would be far more memorable for everyone that day.

Billy saw the more square, bigger house that his mommy called 'The Mall' with all the best stores for toys and other fun stuff. In fact they were just about to cross the street, waiting for all the big toy cars to go by, and then it happened.

Mommy dropped her plastic talkbox. She never dropped her plastic talkbox. Billy looked up to see his mother sweating profusely and her mouth open, a weird sound coming out like a small chattering as though her throat was blocked. Billy got scared.

"Mommy? What's wrong?" In response, Mommy lifted him up and she ran screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Monster! Monster on the South City Capital Building!" In reaction, others looked up and saw the same sight, and repeated the same action of running away screaming.

Curious, Billy looked over his mommy's shoulder and there the 'monster' was. He wasn't that scary.

Although the building was very far away, Billy's young eyes could make out the basic features of the Big Person rather well and besides his purple skin tone and the two guards in black next to him, he looked like any other big person except that he could stand very still on the tip of the capital building.

Billy decided to wave and smile at the big person happily, not wanting to be mean like everyone else. He could have sworn the man smiled at him.

It was unfair what he did next. So unfair.

Billy would probably never know why he did it, or how he did it. After all he was just another random, unaware civilian in a world filled with super powered beings beyond his comprehension.

The purple man raised his hand slowly, his index and middle finger out and the rest of his fingers closed. With a swift action, his hand and two fingers were raised suddenly and for Billy and many others, everything went dark.

The mere mortals were shared the spectacle of South City being destroyed from the inside out. The tower was the first to go in a pillar of purple light, disintegrating the concrete and glass with sheer power from the bottom up. The pillar of light then began to spread out, swallowing up city blocks, cars, buildings and people in its path. The explosion of raw power continued to spread out in a circular pattern that formed a crater and seemed to continuously expand.

The pillar suddenly reformed into a condensed ball of purple energy that remained in the air for a few moments before releasing the remaining, pressurized energy in a tremendous explosion then it all ended with a deafening bang that deepened the crater by several hundred feet, the displacement of dust and rubble being kicked up and forming a mushroom cloud for all to see.

[Stop BGM]

The explosion had only left a small rim of the city intact, the rest a gigantic scar in the Earth. All this happened in a few seconds.

It was unfair.

The purple man floated in the epicentre of the doom and destruction, the same position as he was before except now his own energy supporting his weight. The being smiled slightly, 'Zat should gain his attention…'

[BGM: Gohan's Death Theme Extended]

The destruction of South City had been recorded by a news crew from West City National News (WCNN) after their truck had a flat on the way back, leaving them stranded on the roadside until a pickup truck came by from South City. That truck wasn't coming anymore.

The destruction had been caught by total luck. The cameraman had thought one of his best pieces of recording had gone bust, so he decided to test it out, cleaning the lens, taking a look at the insides and making sure its personal stand wasn't creaky.

He had only been taking random shots of birds in the sky, some cars driving by and blades of grass. Then there was a sudden uproar of screams from the city, shocking the cameraman, making him lose his grip on the device and knocking the record button by accident. After the explosion happened, he was unsure how to turn off the camera, how to look away… how to breath.

The reporter on scene was none other than Penny, the mother of Erasa, and rather jealous of Jimmy Firecracker, the charismatic reporter of the Cell Games and renowned gullible fool. She deserved that story! Not him! But her speaking out against Hercule during a rather… interesting… interview of him launching a new line of female lingerie had landed her a job of the less known WCNN.

Thanks to her ethics, she was now stuck always reporting just after ZTV, who had far higher funds for faster transport and a far more competent people for crew. She just wished she could get one over them, get one story recorded first! That would show them… but she didn't want it like this…

Penny cleaned herself up as best she could. She had a job to do here and she was not going let this opportunity slip by. Penny's blonde her moved behind her hour-glass figure body thanks to the winds. Normally, she would be known as one of the most beautiful reporters on any station worldwide, famous for never wearing makeup, but she needed it now for the usually plucky reporter was now so pale a ghost looked tan in comparison and her grey business suit looked darker than night.

Sucking in a deep breath, Penny raised the mike to her mouth and prepared to do the hard part of her job. A less traumatized crew member had taken over the camera while the one who had seen and recorded the event was trying to drink some water, his hand too shaken for to drink it properly.

"Good day people of the world." Spoke Penny and she took another breath to calm herself, "I suppose however it is not a good day for all… I stand here by the roadside of the SC1 National Highway, and as you can see behind me, what was once South City is no more. Only a cloud of destruction left in its wake. Many of you may think this is impossible, but I assure you, this city was sent up in a flash of purple light… presumably killing everyone. It is not clear at this moment if this was some form of a terrorist attack… it is also possible that Majin Buu has returned, or something similar to him. We don't know for sure. The devastation was quick, brutal and silent, so it is unlikely Majin Buu, however it could be an even more dangerous and cunning monster that we now have before us. Many of you are now turning most likely or thinking of the hero Hercule, but I believe that he is far out of his league in this. No, he could never win a fight with someone like this… instead I think of Saiyaman. He may have caused mayhem but he, and the heroes of three weeks ago, may be our only hope. Saiyaman, if you are watching this, please… we need your help." Penny paused, knowing this was unethical, but she didn't care, "And… Erasa, don't worry about Mom. She's fine. Please honey: stay safe. And remember, I love you. This is Penny Stationery, signing off… as I go into the heart of the storm."

[Stop BGM]

The crew member gave a thumbs-up as a sign the feed had been cut. Penny had asked for a live feed to the station, knowing they would most likely edit around the names of Saiyaman and Hercule in her speech, and that was not going to happen on her watch. Credit was due where credit was due!

She only hoped that her message had indeed reached the hero…

Little did Penny know that the message had indeed reached Gohan, and her own daughter as well. Those throughout the entire country had felt the shockwaves of the monster's attack on South City.

Many students demanded that they be shown what was happening and eventually, to quell all the complaints, the principal reluctantly gathered all the students into the school's auditorium and lowered the projection screen. The projector was then connected to a T.V. and the channel changed to WCNN. The students were not expecting what they saw.

The screen went a bright purple and a few dying screams could be heard as the explosion swallowed the city whole.

Many were speechless as a quiet hush fell over the room. No one talked or moved for a long time as the footage was played over and over again. Everyone waited for the news that one news anchor regretfully delivered, "At this current moment in time… it is believed that there are no survivors whatsoever… that-that is all for now. May the Kais be with you all. This is WCNN head news anchor Clark Kent, signing off."

The room went into an uproar. Many of the girls burst out into tears whilst the males tried to comfort a few whilst a group of the boys rushed off to the bathroom covering their mouths and their faces green. Sounds of vomiting could be heard soon after.

The teachers all had their mouths open in disbelief and shock, many of them sobbing. South City had been a transport hub of the continent with people moving in and out day by day. That day was the first day of the month, meaning that people had just gotten paycheques and were eager to cash them. The city was at maximum capacity, most likely with family members.

Videl looked on in horror. Who would do something like that? They had already lost another city due to some villain barely a month ago and they had almost lost the Earth three times in her life! When would it stop? And where was her father?! Where was Saiyaman?! Where was anybody?! She knew she couldn't face up to that, so why weren't they?

The principal was a large, powerful looking man. The kind that always gave a smile and seemed friendly but not someone you wanted to anger. He was meant to be a symbol of strength and understanding, but no one could have prepared him for this. Today was just supposed to be another day walking around the school, doing paperwork, and just doing his job, not try and help several hundred teenagers deal with a massacre.

Gathering his courage the principal stood at the podium, his bald head shining in the light.

"Students." The man said as loudly as he could to gain their attention, "Due to… recent events, I am canceling school for the rest of the day. Please, gather your belongings and tread home safely… that is all." The gigantic space had people filing out slowly in somber moods and many of the students had to remain in their seats as this others left. Two of those were Gohan and Videl.

Erasa had been balling on Sharpener's shoulder as they left and Videl expected a swarm of girls on Gohan, this however was not the case. When Videl turned, she found Gohan gripping the seat in front of him hard, a faint yellow glow around his body. The teen seemed to be holding back… something, as his teeth were clenched hard and sweat was coming his brow whilst his eyes were white balls of fury. In all their friendship, Videl couldn't remember a time when they Gohan was actually, truly angry. Annoyed sometimes yes, but not angry.

'Damn it!' The Saiyan yelled within his mind and gripping the seat tighter, 'I try and save people and then an entire city just gets destroyed! I've put so many criminals behind bars and it doesn't matter! No matter how much good I do, there's always someone else wanting to harm my planet!' The seat was ripped clean out of its bolts. Luckily Gohan and Videl were the only ones still in the auditorium, so nobody else could notice.

The Saiyan however paid no mind to what had just happened and stood up righ, throwing the seat away like tissue, his fists taught in righteous fury and the air growing hot as his power increased little by little. His blood pumped in anticipation of the retribution he would enact on whoever did this!

"G-Gohan?" Videl said meekly as her friend blazed with a golden aura, barely noticing her voice. Thankfully though her voice seemed to gain his attention. The Saiyan looked her way and calmed down slowly.

"Videl." The teen spoke with a commanding voice, "It would be best for your own safety if you forget what you just saw." Videl nodded slowly as she now noticed she had been backing away from her friend and had almost fallen off a step on the stair. By the time she had regained her balance, Gohan was gone without a trace.

Meanwhile at The Lookout, most of Earth's Special Forces had gathered at the call of Piccolo. None knew what the serious Namek had in store for them as he had kept silent since they arrived and revealed nothing in his telepathic message, asking them all to come.

As a result, the humans were forced to find ways to entertain themselves till the time of revelation was at hand, Yamcha walking the edge of the monument, Krillin pacing back and forth, hoping 18 wouldn't try to kill Roshi while he watched over her and that the old coot wouldn't do anything foolish to his pregnant wife.

Tien and Chiaoutzu had taken to some light sparring on The Lookout, their attacks causing small shockwaves. Piccolo smiled slightly during his meditation, 'Just like peace times. They all act as if this happens every day.' The Namekians smile dropped as did his meditation position when they all felt the energy signature of Dende coming nearer.

The teenage Namekian revealed himself by slowly stepping out of the shadows of the building and came closer to the group with a worried face. The humans were almost shocked to see the change that had occurred since they last saw the Guardian.

The teen had undergone a growth spurt, putting him at about Gohan's shoulder, his muscles were far more toned thanks to Piccolo's training and his energy felt as Vegeta's when he first arrived on Earth. Dende's face also seemed different, hardened perhaps and his clothing was much like that of Elder Moori but different in color: White, fluffy pants with a black sash to hold them up and a brown, open vest to show off his chest as well as a white scruff around his neck yet he still carried Kami's cane.

"I bet you're all wondering why I brought you here today." Dende spoke as he came closer and all responded with a nod, but Yamcha posed a question.

"But, I thought it was Piccolo who contacted us. Why didn't you just do it yourself?" The former bandit inquired.

"I'm getting to that." The teen responded almost sharply, putting the group on edge. The Namekian boy sighed and smiled slightly, "Sorry. This whole business has me a bit stressed. Now then down to business: You've all no doubt felt the destruction of South City." The group nodded, "Well, I'm afraid we might have bigger problems on our hands as well. Whoever it is who destroyed the city is not from this world… not even this dimension." The group became confused at this and Tien spoke up.

"Not that I'm doubting your skills or anything, but just how do you know this?" The triclops asked confused as to how the others had only felt this power as another villain.

"I'm far more in tune with the Earth than the rest of you, that is my job after all, and there was some sort of disturbance just before this… man, arrived. It felt sort of like when Shenron revived those people that Cell killed, except this is far more… malevolent somehow."

"Well I could have figured that out." Interrupted Yamcha again, "I still don't get why you called us here. I mean, you could have just sent out a message." The human pointed out and again aggravated the guardian.

"I. Am. Getting. To. That!" The boy grunted out before regaining his composure, "But this being, whoever he is, is possibly the least of our worries." Dende said worriedly.

"What are you talking about? He might have a high power but nothing that we can't handle and anything similar." Piccolo said with much confidence as he folded his arms.

"It's beyond his power Piccolo. I was meditating in there to feel out another disturbance the Earth was feeling. A far larger portal is opening. I don't know if it's the same dimension, but I highly doubt this someone is friendlier than out current invader." The group nodded in understanding and were about to take off before Dende continued his explanation.

"You all no doubt understand this means that whoever that is needs to be taken care of before the other… guest I suppose, comes here. So to help this along, here." The young Namekian threw a blue bottle adored in an Eastern style towards Piccolo who caught it with one hand.

"The Sacred Water?" The green warrior inquired his charge whilst he looked at the bottle, confused as to how this would help.

"I've done some research on it. According to a few of Kami's books the water will decrease the power of anyone evil who drinks it. It wasn't much of a decrease but I've toyed with it during a bit of free time, so now it will cut the evil drinker's power in half, at least until it leaves their system, and has a poisonous effect on their bodies." The guardian explained as Piccolo observed the bottle more intently.

"But wait a second. Didn't Tao also drink of the water? I heard that he took some after climbing Korin's Tower." The normally quiet Tien spoke up as Chiaoutzu nodded in agreement.

"Tao wasn't necessarily evil. Just greedy and a bit malevolent but not evil. Because of this, the water only stunted his power growth temporarily, instead of decreasing it. Now I suggest you hurry before our friend decides to destroy another city." The group all nodded and grunted as a response but Krillin made them pause.

"I don't know if I should go guys, I mean- I have a wife and a kid on the way." The monk said worriedly. True, he had fought many battles before with worse odds but now he had something worth losing besides his life.

"Hey don't sweat it! We've been training real hard so I'm sure we can handle this guy!" Yamcha reassured his friend with a pat on the back, "Besides, if anything happens to you, 18 is all mine." The bandit said jokingly as he took off and Krillin followed behind with a small chuckle.

"Yeah. The first time she breaks your arm is the time you know she really cares." The others followed behind after the joking duo, Tien and Chiaoutzu offering a small bow before taking off after them.

Back with Gohan the teen was far from a happy mood. The hybrid was currently walking down a hall of the school to the building's rooftop…less than pleased. Small dents occurred in the floor as the boy walked, ready to give this villain what for and then some!

'All my life I try to protect everyone, but it just never stops!' Gohan thought loudly in his head. Gohan suddenly stopped, his fist smacking into a wall angrily, almost breaking it in half, 'No more holding back! That stops today! These monsters clearly don't get the message that Earth is off limits!' Standing at full height, Gohan narrowed his eyes and reached for his watch, 'Well this time they'll get a message clearer than daylight.'

"Hey Gohan!" A usually snarky voice made the hero pause for his watch. Gohan turned around to see Sharpener coming down the hall with a bit of a run. The male huffed slightly as his hands went onto his knees, "Wow specs for a nerd you sure are fast!" The blonde jock declared with a small laugh as he regained his breath.

"What do you want Sharpener? I've got somewhere to go." The Saiyan inquired with a rather frustrated voice but was surprised to see Sharpener's expression become serous as well.

"I know." The jock paused, "Look, I'm giving Erasa a ride home… she's a little broken up right now…"

"Look, I'm sorry to hear that but I really can't help her through-" The human raised his hand to silence Gohan.

"Yeah dude I know. I just wanted to say: Give him one for me, kay?" Gohan almost turned pale from the shock. Had Sharpener found out? How? When? Where?! He knew he'd been careful with costume changes since the incident with Videl.

"Wh-what are you talking about? I'm just loaded with homework and this short day is giving me a chance to-to…" The Saiyan sighed and his expression became serious again, "Okay fine you've got me. How did you find out?"

Sharpener allowed a sliver of a smile onto his face as he looked out the window slightly, "You'd been going up the roof a lot lately, taking extra-long bathroom breaks and often itching to move whenever Videl took off to fight crime. When I told Erasa about it, she just said love was in the air." The male chuckled a little, "I saw through it though. One day I followed you up to the roof and saw you change. I got an even bigger surprise when you flew off." Sharpener turned back to see Gohan with a somewhat worried look.

"Huh. So much for a secret identity." The Saiyan grumbled softly as his fist shook slightly.

"Don't worry man. Secret's safe with me. I sure as heck see no reason to put your family in danger or have any more girls hanging around your arm. You would start to make me look bad." The warrior sighed with a small relief, "Besides, I'm sure you'd cream me if I did something like that! Ha ha ha!"

"Ya know Sharpener, you're a good friend. Just make sure though Videl doesn't catch wind of this. I have a feeling that maybe she'll want a little something more out of it." The warrior half-joked.

"That's girls for you." The jock turned around with a thumbs-up and was about to walk away when he paused, "You know, it would be great though if you could train me to get as strong as you and stuff." Gohan smiled slightly before he responded.

"Just drink plenty of milk and do lots of sit-ups." Sharpener was about to retort when he turned around and found a window open and no Gohan.

"Ha. Numbskull thinks he's Batman or something." Sharpener mumbled as he continued to journey down the hall back to his car.

The humans neared their target, finally able to make out their enemies energy signature. Whoever this guy was, he was good at hiding his power. It felt odd to say the least. His power seemed to flow calmly and smoothly but in an arrogant way and like Shokubutsu's, it felt like it did not belong in this world.

"Hey guys!" Krillin called out over the winds of their flight, "I can see two other guys next to him! I can't seem to get a good reading on any of their power levels!"

"That means that unlike last time we're dealing with fighters a bit more professional!" Tien called back and received a nod from the others.

"Remember: Stay close and keep your power low. I can tell the guy in the middle is holding back." Piccolo warned as they finally came within a good distance of the purple man and his guards.

The two guards wore identical clothing: all black shirts that covered their arms, thin black pants and gigantic black boots. On their heads they wore black executioner masks with red, V-shaped visors and no mouth hole. They each stood at about eight feet in height and on their backs they carried gigantic axes the length of their bodies and the blades looked large enough to cut a car in half with one swing.

Each floated on either side of their master who seemed tiny in comparison. His skin was smooth, a light purple, he stood at just above Gohan's current height and had a toned build. His features were strong and developed, looking like a prince from a fairy tale even complete with a long, pointy, blonde Mohawk that curved to the side slightly upon his head.

He wore regal clothing: Golden boots, white, baggy pants, a shining white dinner shirt (complete with a ruffle at the top) that was covered by a royal blue vest with a silver pattern on the bottom left corner. The outfit was tied together with a red cape with a gold chain that hung on his right shoulder.

The alien floated in the air, arms crossed and eyes closed. Finally, after a short few awkward moments of the humans staring at him the man sighed, turning his head and speaking in a heavy French accent, "Pardon-moi jentlemen, but I am being of the expecting someone, so I would appreciate your moving along." The man said rather rudely.

"We're not going anywhere until you've paid for what you've done here." Piccolo declared as he threw off his weighted training clothes and the others entered battle stances with a few grunts of agreement simultaneously.

'I don't know about this guys.' Krillin said to the others telepathically, 'I have a bad feeling about this.'

'So do I Krillin, but I want answers from this guy. I feel that him, Raditz and that demon you fought are all connected somehow.' Piccolo replied as he got ready for a fight, wanting to get some answers for recent events. He was surprised however when the guards jumped in front of their master.

"You fool!"

"How dare you address our master in such a way!" The two replied, in equally heavy accents, almost in sync as though they were each one, gruff-voiced person, "You common trash shall not lay a finger on him."

"We shall teach you a lesson! We shall-" The brute paused as his master raised his hand to silence him.

"Tea, Coffee. Please calm down." The man then turned to the humans, "You will be of the making me pay? Ha! With those power levels I wouldn't trust you to carry my cutlery." In response the humans nodded at one another and raised their powers to the very max, their voices in sync and shaking the remains inside the crater.

The winds generated made their enemies cape flutter in the wind and pushed the guards back a little, yet the Brench-seijin kept his arms crossed as he floated still, un-amused.

"What do you think of us now?" Yamcha said rubbing the bridge of his nose and standing in a pose ready to deal out the Rōgafūfūken at any moment. His enemy merely sighed however.

"It's more than what I ever expected your species to accomplish, especially for the Namekian, but when I was talking about your power levels, I was talking about your… how do you say? 'Best of the best' as it were." The group were each taken back a bit, "What? Sensing energy is one of my specialties. I am impressed to say I think you could probably give my men a run for zeir moneys."

"But sir!" Both Tea and Coffee yelled in unison but were hushed by their master who now swept back his cape and cracked his neck.

"Relax boys. Zis is a thing of good. I was needing of a 'warming up'." Faster than most could see Yamcha had a fist implanted deep in his stomach. Tien could only take a moment to realize that had occurred before an elbow struck him in the face. The Brench-seijin then turned around in a fluid motion and hit Krillin in the back of the head with a low kick and punched Chiaoutzu in the face simultaneously.

For his final target, he aimed a kick at Piccolo's midsection but was surprised to find it blocked with Piccolo's arms in an x-like form. The purple being smiled before pushing off and moving his cape back to its original position, the other Z-Fighters falling to the Earth slowly and unconscious.

"Most impressive Namek." The monster said as Piccolo huffed slightly and he returned his cape to its original position, "You were able to block an attack from my full power. Not many can do such a thing, even less can do so and remain standing. Now zen, I would love to stay and continue zis, but it appears my target has arrived. Tea, Coffee: Keep our friend entertained." The alien turned around with a smile, "Au revoir Namek! It was… a 'blast'!"

"No! Wait!" Piccolo was halted by the axes of Tea and Coffee.

"Don't worry Namek."

"Yes. Just sit back and relax while we are beating you to death!" Piccolo was able to dodge the two swings of their axes that came next and jump off Tea's head to gain some distance.

'Darn it! Looks like I'll only be able to get out of here after I take care of these guys. I just hope Gohan can handle this…'

[BGM: String Theory by Les Friction]

The Brench-seijin flew over the remains of the city, searching out the power of a particular Saiyan, the purple man being amazed that there were remains at all.

The ground was grey and dull, covered with the ash of both buildings and people. Building remains rose out of the carcass of the city like pale, dull skeletons, never reaching more than three or four stories in height. The cloud of smoke still hung in the air, making the area all the more morbid.

It didn't take the alien long to find his target as he was the only thing for miles not covered in ash and stood out like a dark spot of vengeance, not that this frightened the instigator.

Saiyaman stood at the very centre of the crater with his hands in his pockets and his face down. Even through the mask, the devastation was clear: The air was thick and heavy, as though you could taste the dying screams of the citizens. There was no smell at all though, as if even that had been vaporized.

The hero was looking at the ground for a reason though: the mall was once here, the toy store to be specific and on the ground lay a teddy bear… with a small handprint on it.

The sight was enough to jolt the Saiyan back to Namek. There he was as a frightened young boy again, death all around him and watching Elder Moori and Dende on death's doorstep while all he and Krillin could do was watch until Moori too was no more. Dende had been saved in the nick of time… but that didn't matter now. He had broken his self-promise.

Millions of souls had now died on his watch and Gohan tightened his fists in anger at the. No. This was different. This time, he had more than enough power to send a very clear message to all challengers and would be tyrants.

"Bonjour monsieur!" A formal voice spoke happily. The masked vigilante raised his eyes and became sickened at the sight of his opponent, thinking this was a good day for some reason, as though he was oblivious to the destruction he had caused, "How are you zis fine day?"

"Okay right now, but I think I'll feel a lot better after I send you to hell." Saiyaman spoke in his altered voice, his yellow eyes burrowing into the unfazed villain.

The Brench-seijin gave a small chuckle at the threat, "Oh come now, must we be so of the violent? Giving empty threats, as zough I feared the afterlife." The purple man gave a smirk. His presence was strange to say the least, as though the universe was rejecting his very existence, but he just said no.

"Listen pal, I don't care who you are or what you've come for, but what you've done here is unforgiveable. These people were innocent and ignorant of our world. You've caused pain here for no reason, and now I'll make you pay for it." Gohan spoke with anger and spite, a small amount of power emanating from his body, yet the man dropped his smile.

"Hm. Innocent you say? I have my reasons Saiyan. Not zat you would understand zem." The Brench-seijin said with a small amount of anger brewing.

"Oh, is that so? Well please explain. It won't lengthen your life for much longer." The purple being chuckled slightly at the statement and moved his hand through his golden locks of hair.

The warrior sighed and looked down, "Oh, how ze young are foolish." The Brench-seijin suddenly gave a small, formal bow, "I am Count Fillet Mignon of the Former Planet Brench, former High Ruler of The East Universe."

"Nice introduction. People call me Saiyaman, but I'll keep my real name quiet and forget the bowing altogether if you don't mind. But… Count Mignon… that sounds familiar…" The count gave a laugh and returned to his standing position.

[Stop BGM]

"Oh it is to be expected as I was a 'tyrant' in the time of mine, so it is no surprise you know of me, Son Gohan." The Saiyan held back as much shock as he could, but couldn't help letting a small "Huh?" under his breath, apparently loud enough for Mignon to hear, "Oh yes Saiyaman, we know all about you and your friends."

'We? Just who the hell is this guy? Wait, calm down Gohan. I need to keep a level head here.' The Saiyan thought calming himself down, but still anxious for some answers, "Alright I'll bite. Just who is your group then?" The count laughed again. That was beginning to get annoying.

"Patience young one. A story at a time. Now zen, I believe we shall start with my story..."

[BGM: Pikkon's Theme Extended]

Piccolo moved his head to the left and narrowly dodged a punch and gave Tea a hard kick in the ribs, sending the massive alien away and only giving Piccolo enough time to jump up slightly and avoid a dark red energy from the other twin, which the Namekian warrior returned with a blast of golden light, hitting its mark and giving Piccolo some much needed breathing room.

The warrior had barely been holding his own against the two brutes for the past few minutes, bruises and burn marks evident of that. Although his power was just higher than each of theirs separately, together they could easily gain the upper hand, and their gigantic bodies seemed to take ki blasts like nothing, not to mention that they had axes that when swung could create large arcs of red energy sure to slice him in half. This was all coupled with their experience and natural Brench agility. At least when alone, his punches caused damage.

This meant that Piccolo needed to find a way to avoid their weapons, outmaneuver them, keep them separate, keep his distance and fight close at the same time, all the while giving himself breathing room.

Even on paper the situation looked bad to say the least.

"Come now little slug, is that"

"The best you can do?" The twins reappeared, seemingly unfazed by the attacks, and again finishing each other's sentences as though they were one person.

At this point in time, Piccolo had finally managed to distinguish his two opponents: Tea preferred to attack from a good distance whilst coffee came in with hard, strong physical attacks.

"As if." The green warrior relaxed his stance and cracked his neck, spitting out some purple blood simultaneously, "I'm beginning to get accurate readings of your strengths. It won't be much longer before you two are corpses. I suggest you quite while you're ahead."

The brutes kept silent for a few moments before laughing heartily and clutching their stomachs as Coffee began, "That was a good one"

"Namek. Perhaps we'll honour you after all,"

"By keeping your head as a prize!" The twins rushed forward again, attacking from both sides and forcing Piccolo to take a few hits. Tea kept aiming high for Piccolo's head with his battle-axe while Coffee aimed low at the warrior's ribs and sides. The twins were working in sync, forming an intricate pattern as they flew around the Namek and attacked simultaneously.

Piccolo was having a hard time blocking all the random attacks, especially the axe, and was now getting full of bruises and cuts. He'd need to do something fast.

The warrior suddenly saw an opening when Coffee moved in to hit the Namekian in the stomach as Tea came in with a large swoop of his axe. With expert timing, Piccolo managed to summersault over Coffee's head as he was about to hit and used Tea's axe as a springboard, narrowly dodging being sliced in two.

The Namekian was able to get some distance between him and them at last and fired a large, golden energy blast that hastened his decent, but it still managed to hit home and engulfed the two Brench-seijins.

Seconds before the blast however, the two simultaneously shouted, "Double Shield!" And sure enough a red orb of energy encompassed them, shielding them from the attack and taking up only partial bits of each one's energy. When the smoke cleared, so did the shield, yet they soon found that to be a bad move as an elongated, green arm hit Coffee dead centre on his forehead, sending him back a ways.

Tea however had enough time to react and managed to grab the arm and pulled with all his might, forcibly bringing Piccolo in closer. The Namekian had gained too much speed to slow down and received a punch to the jaw, followed by the giant stomping on his stomach, sending him down to Earth, but Coffee was waiting in midair for him and delivered a shattering kick to Piccolo's back, sending him back up where Tea prepared to deliver a double-fisted blow.

The Namekian, however, wasn't out of the fight just yet. When he reached Tea, he blocked the blow and grabbed onto Tea's forearms, allowing the green warrior to throw him over his shoulder after which he launched a beam of yellow energy from his mouth, hitting its mark in a flash of golden light.

Meanwhile, Coffee had tried to sneak up on Piccolo and prepared to slice him in two with his axe. The Brench brought the axe down hard and fast, only for Piccolo to turn in time to block the handle with his forearm, the blade centimetres from his face. The Namekian suddenly kneed his opponent in the groin, making Coffee bend over in pain and allowing Piccolo to force his elbow upon the base of the other's neck.

Coffee hit the ground hard, but was quickly helped up by his brother. The two paused for a short moment before nodding at one another and taking off, out of the crater, towards Piccolo. Again the attacks came from all directions, but this time more precise and even faster, forcing Piccolo into another tight spot.

For some reason the two were now keeping their axes sheathed on their backs once more, instead attacking him with wide punches and kicks as they flew higher into the sky.

Wait. They were toying with him now! First Frieza, then Cell and now these two were making a game out of him?!

"Stop… mocking me!" The Namekian yelled in fury as he began to counter their attacks. Piccolo ducked under a right hook and delivered a devastating punch to Tea's face, sending him off. The warrior then parried a kick, punch and knee from Coffee and landed a hard kick to his chin. The Namekian turned around once more with his hands raised above his head, "Masenko-ha!" The yellow beam moved quickly, barely giving Tea enough time to shield his face.

The Namekian panted with a small smile, "Hm. Just as I thought: relying too much on brute force and not enough on skill. Bunch of amateurs."

"What?!" The twins shouted simultaneously. The appeared several yards before Piccolo as they floated above the remaining city but still below the layer of smoke from the explosion. Whilst Coffee was only left with a somewhat broken jaw, Tea was covered in burn marks and his dark blue skin now visible through his torn armour, but his armour still intact.

"Oh, ho, ho, ho. You have done it now"

"Namek!" Tea ended the sentence, shaking his fist in anger. The two attacked head on with yells of anger, yet Tea pulled up at the last second, distracting Piccolo and allowing Coffee to land a hard hit on his face. Yet, instead of starting an onslaught the Brench beast gave a hard punch to the Namekian's gut and then put him in a Full Nelson while holding his right arm out.

Tea suddenly appeared a good distance away, higher in the sky, "You have caused quite the trouble for us mon ami, so let us see how well you fight with one arm!" The tip of Tea's blade became a deep scarlet color as he channeled more energy into it.

Piccolo struggled against Coffee but his grip was iron-like and he simply wouldn't budge. Tea's blade had now reached maximum capacity and was glowing hot. The brute pulled back till the back of the axe was touching his foot and then swung down with all his might, releasing a tall but thin arc of monstrous energy that headed straight for Piccolo's arm like a hot knife through butter, making the warrior scream in agony.

The fighter however swallowed his pain and found that his arm had been reduced to a small stump with purple blood leaking out. Tea suddenly appeared before the stump and examined it rather closely, "Aww, poor little slug has a boo boo?"

Piccolo grinned happily as he felt his energies being moved from his centre to his arm, "Not quite." Before Tea could comment, a fist suddenly appeared from seemingly nowhere and decked him in the nose, making the giant clutch it in pain. The warrior followed up on this by smashing his head into his captors face, loosening his grip slightly and allowing Piccolo to move out of the Nelson quickly and fire a beam of golden energy directly at his chest, sending him away.

Meanwhile, tea was about to recover, several French curse words along his recovery, but a foot to his stomach impeded this. The Namekian warrior finally had some time to catch his breath and did so with gusto. When enough stamina had been regained, he powered up with the last bit of power he had been holding back.

[Stop BGM]

It was only 5% of his maximum but it sure as hell gave him a much needed boost in stamina and mindset.

The terrible duo finally returned, this time far more cautious and their axes drawn.

'Odd. I haven't sensed a spike in Gohan's power. What are they doing at a time like this? Exchanging stories?!' The angered Namekian thought as he resumed his fighting stance, ready for the next round.

[BGM: Long Flashback Theme]

As a matter of fact, all that had happened during their fight was story telling. Mignon had gone into great detail about his past, none of Gohan's questions left unanswered.

It had all dated back to roughly 2 Million Years Before Age, or 2MYBA , when Shokubutsu had first emerged. Piracy had never been on a galactic scale until there was such a growing need for expansion that more habitable planets were needed

Most races tried to limit births and naturally decline population numbers or perhaps try to 'grow' a planet… other races had harsher methods.

Unlike in the Galactic Wars of 3 MYBA, there were no rules of conduct. Powerful armies with large spaceships simply came in and slaughtered the current inhabitants and tried to leave the area itself as unharmed as possible after which they were paid and any surviving inhabitants were either killed, became slaves or somehow molded into the new society. It really depended on who did the job and who hired them.

At first, it was more like mercenaries for hire that fought wars, as the attackers could quickly be attacked back, but over the course of a few thousand years as populations continued to rise besides measures taken. Resources dwindled, cities became crowded and work had become a birthright, passing jobs down the line of family, forcing many to turn to thievery and mercenary works, since they often didn't have long life expectancies so jobs were always available.

Eventually, the clock struck 2MYBA, and something happened: Shokubutsu. His power level and transformation abilities were unparalleled in the entire Eastern Galaxy and he was far smarter than he looked.

In actuality, Shokubutsu was no alien at all, but an escapee from the Demon Dimension.

At first he was a soldier-for-hire, but as time went on, he grew in strength and decided that the work he did had business opportunities. He was able to… persuade the Eastern Galactic Senate to legalize his business and the World Obtainment Corporation Society was created.

Planets began to pay top dollar for his services, and his army spread as well as his legend, inspiring beings from distant galaxies such as the Acrosians and Bojack to get into the pirating business. Shokubutsu set the example in more ways than one though: he was a tyrant, merciless and ruthless to the end (as well as extremely narcissistic).

But, it was not to last. After fifty years of Shokubutsu's reign, The Supreme Kai appeared, apparently none too happy about the state of the galaxy former under his gaze. Shokubutsu had over glorified the battle when he told the Earthlings and his comrades in Hell. In fact, the demon had only put up a good fight but it had been obvious who the victor would be from the start.

Yet, that was all Shin did before his leave. The East Galaxy was left in shambles and piracy continued without any hope. Yet, hope was one thing that guided young Fillet.

During the piracy the Brench-seijins had been forced off their planet, any remaining survivors being forced to move to a still empty planet in the North Galaxy, and make due with the harsher environments and increased gravity. Most had gotten used to the new life over time, but there were still Brench who dreamed of their home planet and dead ancestors.

One such Brench had been Fillet Mignon, who had lost his parents to the piracy plague that had spread over the universe over two million or so years. At first, Fillet blended in with the other orphans, trying to find a content life, but after just one week, he realized he had a higher purpose.

So the boy decided to practice some fighting, perhaps let off some steam and clear his mind. However, by simply watching and listening to training of martial arts masters from a distance, he began to learn at a surprising speed, surpassing them in a matter of years. As he trained a fire burnt within him, a desire to snuff out piracy.

Months turned into years and the boy had become a man, now ruler of New Brench. The planet was free of crime and evil under his rule and the citizens now more powerful, but he was far from his goal. He began a slow domination of worlds, sending troops to rid them of any Planet Trade troops until he reached literally the mother of all targets: Planet Arcos.

The fight was harder than any fight before and he lost half his army that day but he believed he had managed to do it: wipe out every last one of the monsters. Had he known he had missed a small group of children, one of them being King Cold himself, perhaps he would have destroyed the planet, just to be safe.

But he had other plans: The East Galaxy. He returned to his ancestor's home to find it in disarray once more, but not for long. For a good ten years, piracy had never even been uttered or considered, as now a new tyrant ruled over the East Galaxy.

[Stop BGM]

"Ze people needed a ruler to properly command them. Insibordanation would not be of ze tolerated." The Count spoke coldly.

"Let me guess, whenever you heard of planets planning a coup, you went and personally destroyed them, right?" Saiyaman asked, his arms folded and his voice sarcastic.

"It was some necessary evil. Justice could not occur without destruction and laws." Mignon returned, not too happy with the Saiyan's judgement of his actions, "And besides, I tried to rule benevolently at ze first, but as soon as a law was passed, people found a way around it, I try to help the poor, but ze rich say non, I try to simply ask parliament for support in something and they throw reasons at me for why people should suffer!" The former leader was now steaming with anger, a few things that needed to be said finally came out, but Gohan remained stoic.

"And as soon as you took action, people obeyed, right?" The purple man smiled slightly, Gohan didn't need an answer.

"Oui, zis is true. But unfortunately ze Supreme Kai came for anozer visit, not pleased that there was finally peace."

"I think he was more upset over the people's pain." The Saiyan butted in, but Mignon ignored him.

"At first I tried to reason with him, and he listened at least… for a while. He gave me a… how do you say? Ul-ti-mat-um?: Shange my ways or be killed. You can guess my answer." The story was no nearing its close, and Gohan could tell. He needed to be ready for whatever this guy could throw at him. Although he was confident in his own abilities, taking over an entire quarter of the universe was no small feat.

"Although I had ze upper hand in strength and technique, his mental capabilities were too much, even for me. I had him on 'Death's Door' as it were, but his companion managed to distract me for a moment, giving the Kai enough time to pierce my mental defences and hold my muscles in place, followed by a swift blast of enerjy through my heart." The count clutcthed his chest for a few moments, depressed, but soon let go and smiled darkly, "But it appears I have been given a of ze new chance to rule again, this time with some help from my employer."

"That was all I needed to hear." The Saiyan let his arms drop to his sides, "You may have started out good, but in reality, you're just another tyrant. You strayed from your path and paid the price, but for some reason you just keep saying that you're too good for punishment. Well guess what, you took one step too far and now you've messed with the wrong guy. Welcome to your to the final act of your life, lavender face. I'll be playing the part of your reckoning."

The count clapped, pleased with the threat and the words, even if he did disagree with them. Fillet moved a bong out of his eyes as he spoke, "It seems you would turn down my offer of joining me, is of ze too bad. Ah well, you have said some bold words Saiyan, let us see you back zem up." The two shared now more words and entered fighting stances.

Now, the real fight would begin.

A/N: Wow! One year already! I've come a long way, and you guys have helped a lot. I hope you enjoyed my longest chapter ever! And that this has made up for my absence from this fic.

Now I'm sure that you are all filled with questions, so please ask away!

But just to clear a little something up: Brench-seijin is the official species of Jeice and Salza, so I hope that helps you see him, Tea and Coffee a little bit better.

(Sorry, no Q&A here cause there aren't really any questions :P)