Dragonball M, Chapter 2: Lighthouse! Across the Shores of Shattered Time!

[KingofPie]

Despite the circumstances that appeared to be growing more dire by the second, the Nevadian could not draw his attention away from Sasheem. The creature had undergone a drastic physical transformation, true. For one thing, it no longer seemed bound by the toilet that it had been stuck to---or perhaps vice versa. But even non-withstanding the lack of porcelain encapsulating its lower half, it looked like an entirely different creature, from the way it looked, the way it stood, and even the way it spoke.

"....You seem different." Held said at last, unable to remain silent, glancing over the Majin with a discerning eye,"...Did you go on a new diet or something? I always thought switching from your candy to something more balanced might be good for you."

....Still, I can't believe this is Sasheem. What the hell has he been up to for the last six months? He could barely string together a sentence, now I'd think he moonlights as a radio host if I didn't know better.

"Sasheem has changed nothing about his eating habits, prancing pony," the Majin stated as he turned to face the Nevadian. He knew now, of Held's criminal past from P-Sta's memories. He also remembered that the officer had sent in a report about Held to the GP, though he did add an addendum , speaking in support of held for his assitance in the defeat of several threats to the galaxy.

Sasheem found it somewhat funny that he wasn't the only member of the his group being investigated by the GP during his time on Earth. "What has changed, is the method to Sasheem's madness. Turns out that slow and steady wins the race to universal extinction, the Greater Annihilator is a shoe-in to cross the finish line first," the self proclaimed 'Greater Annihilator' proclaimed. "Now...the Malevolent Majin ask you this.... The Galaxy Police. They still after you?"

[Yun Lao]

Return to life loved ones, learn about their foe, and... siring offspring. Quila had to admit that he was not expecting that last one. Then again, it wasn't any of his business what they wished for; he was here simply as reinforcement. Speaking of which, the machine mutant could clearly estimate that, even with their numbers, they were going to be in trouble unless they could up their power levels before Jagam's arrival. Their enemy was at 50,000, his ally unknown, and none of them were anywhere close to being half that strong.

"If you were Queen."

He looked upon her with an unspoken fury, but for the quake of tighten fists at his side and the trembling vein beneath the cloth upon his temple.

"I suppose you must be here on a lark, then, for why else would you be forbidden to return?"

"The enemy of my enemy is my ally; I believe that is one of your planet's idioms, correct?" Quila said, breaking his silence to the assembled, "Her motives can be questioned another time, but as long as the threat of Jagam looms over us it'd be best to focus at the task of hand."

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

Tiamat's appraisal of the situation was thorough - though against his expectations spoken rather crudely for a deity. Indeed, much of it was exactly as Totoma had described first-hand those long days ago, and so did the enemy they knew come to sharper clarity.

"Half-measures for a half-man," he mused openly, "this might be the signature of an arrogant warrior...however..."

His thoughts swiftly turned to the enemy that lurked in the shadows. A Priestess, a watcher. It seemed that at least two sets of the trillion prying eyes hidden in the canopy of stars above were coming to the Earth. Yet of all the insights gleaned in this moment, there was still the question framing this entire dire situation.

Fortunately, the Dragon's direct manner had revealed an insight to the matter, and she stood among them this whole time.





So exposed, her listless, idle countenance spoke words in that distant tone, the usual diplomatic airs now laced with venom. Between Nevanlinna and Sarada, these two emissaries of ancient offworld dynasties stood atop of the Earth to hold their mocking court.

Even now, in the face of Jack's own resurrection, the Earth remained of little more concern to these ones, but a respite, a tasty novelty to be consumed, and nothing more but dust underfoot to be trodden upon when they were finished. Nothing more than hospitality to be taken advantage of, and a stage for their great battle to come.



"If you were Queen."

He looked upon her with an unspoken fury, but for the quake of tighten fists at his side and the trembling vein beneath the cloth upon his temple.

"I suppose you must be here on a lark, then, for why else would you be forbidden to return?"

"I assume one of my kin wants me dead," said Nevanlinna, shrugging. "It should come as one surprise, oh observant one, that power struggles among royalty often involve tying up loose ends. And who better to start with than the runt of the family, isolated as she is on some backwater world? And in the eyes of many, no doubt, tainted by her curiosity of things off-world. Curiosity for its own sake, I mean, rather than merely as a means to enact conquest."

She raised her head a bit, looking down upon the Earthling. "But yes, at best, this planet, its people its history, and every little woven thread that makes up the tapestry that is 'Earth' is nothing but an idle curiosity to me, as well as a means to an end. The same can be said about every other inhabited world, save Reshlan. It is unfortunate, however, that numerous parties seek to do my harm, for I would content to simply be left alone to do what I will. However, if circumstance and the machinations of others force me to take action, then I will destroy those who oppose me so with no mercy, whether they be a stranger or kin I have held dear to me for my entire life."

[Sub-Zero MKA]

Praxat looks at Megan , Sarada and Parsley saying " my kind has never thought about going against the Replitas." " they view themselves as so much weaker than Replitas that they don't even bother to fight back." " on average we Toadians are actually weak compare to the Replitas." " the power gap between my race and the Replitas is huge."


" the average adult Toadian only has a power level of 8 compare to average adult Replita who has power level of 6,000." " that's a large difference in power." " the Replitas are bloodthirsty savage warriors unlike my race who are more peaceful. " " the only two things my race has over the Replitas is that we're more intelligent and that we out number them."


" when came to this planet I was very weak and scare of everything." " the creatures I encounter on this planet were frightening to me at first." " there were times when I thought I wasn't going to make it, but then he show up." " my master Khan ."

" he protected me from dangerous creatures and I was so impressed by him. " " that I wanted to learn from him." " he told me that courage isn't the absent of fear but facing it even when you know your afraid." " I train under him to get stronger and it was lot of hard work."


" now I'm no longer afraid of the Replitas, and I have receive training from Kai." " however I suspect that Replita Leader and his elite forces still have a high power level than I do." " with all that hard work my body doesn't look like the body of the average female Toadian." " the average female Toadian is not know for being muscular. "


" the average female Toadian is chubby ." Praxat pauses for a few moments takes out one of her books and opens to picture that shows a sketch of her expect in the sketch she is chubby looking. Praxat then looks up at the sky saying " if only my race stop being afraid and living in fear." " then maybe they could fight back against the Replitas."


" we're smarter and I'm sure a scientific race such as my can come up with a way to overthrow our captives." " everything the Replitas have from spaceships to weaponry is all because of my race." " my race builds and makes stuff for the Replitas in a place called the Workshop." " that is part of my races enslavement."

"8? 6000?" Parsley said with cool disbelief. "Well, I suppose not every race can be powerful warriors. There has to be a bottom to the totem pole, after all. The solution is simple, frog. You say your race is technologically savvy and builds your slavers weapons and ships, correct? Then it shouldn't be any issue at all to build yourselves weapons powerful enough to overthrow these weak fools. Power armor to compensate for your own weakness, and weapons to not only narrow the gap between you and them, but to surpass them."

She sighed and swept a bang from out of her face. "That I, a complete stranger that didn't know your races existed until a few minutes ago, came up with that embarrassingly simple solution shows much about your race's resolve. Even pacifists must raise arms if they want freedom. That you have so many resources at your disposal and yet continue to live underfoot of another shows that you are either spineless or actually enjoy being enslaved. Since only a masochist would identify as the latter, I can only surmise that you Toadians are little more than weak little cowards who are waiting for someone else to show up and save them.

"Either way, it's pathetic."

[Sub-Zero MKA]

"If it is what her highness, the first and, it would seem she has unknowingly decided, last Queen of the thankfully short-lived Saiyan Empire, desires, then who am I, a mere princess, to argue?" Her tone made it clear that Nevanlinna had expected this of the Saiyan queen, and the disdain she felt for her was in no way hidden or disguised. "I suppose, at the very least, that the billions--or was it trillions?--that your race has ground into dust over the centuries will be able to rest easy knowing the Queen Sarada so graciously offered up her entire species as recompense. Oh, such a desire to atone for the sins of your ancestors! It truly brings a tear to my eye."

"So, the observer finally shows her true colors."

Sarada looked at her in a different light at this moment in time. Whereas before she was someone who the Saiyan Queen felt she could glean insight from, if not about Jagam and this so-called Priestess, but about a great many worlds. Nevanlinna was an intergalactic wanderer, after all. There was no telling how many worlds she had seen in her lifetime, how many people she observed, how many cultures she indulged in.

That was before.

Now, she was little more than one of countless who held Saiyans in an unfavorable light. To reveal herself as so unoriginal in her opinion of Sarada's race -- and Sarada in particular, it seemed -- was disappointing. Regardless, it made Sarada's own opinion of the Threshling Princess all the easier to determine.

"I'd thought we could have been friends. Obviously, that hope was fruitless. More realistically, I'd hoped you would be someone I could come to for intel on different worlds. You have been to many different ones, I assume. As if stands, however, you're just another in a very long line of people who don't hold me and mine in a favorable light. I'll adjust my view of you and interaction with you accordingly. Your concern, however, is duly noted."

The very last sentence was spoke with nothing but caustic derision.

Nevanlinna turned her gaze to Ishtar, regarding her with a cool, unreadable expression. After a moment, she responded: "Make no mistake Ishtar, while I disdain halfbreeds, I am far more... tolerant than the rest of my kind. I cannot blame them for being born--no, it is the fault of their parents for having such... base, disgusting inclinations. But even then, those desires are something they, in all likelihood, cannot help. If I were Queen of Reshlan, halfbreeds and their degenerate parents would be banished from Threshling space, yes, but they would be afforded safe passage elsewhere. As for outsiders... well, it wouldn't do to allow them to set foot on Reshlan itself. Not because of any misguided notions of maintaining the planet's sanctity, but because it is uniformly fatal for outsiders to step foot on the planet. They are hunted down and slain, without fail. I would instead establish and outpost for... trade and other such interactions, where outsiders and the few of my kind that tolerate them may interact."

She paused for a moment and then added: "By the way, considering the circumstances of Jagam's birth, it is... quite possible that there may be a veritable army of saiyan/threshling hybrids, each as powerful or more so than Jagam, about to be loosed upon the Saiyans."

"I wouldn't get too comfortable with the idea that holding mutts at arm's distance is nothing more than a half-measure," Sarada spoke. "Eventually, someone will come in and start changing things in their favor. Before you know it, there will be half-breeds walking around all over Reshlan, breathing your air, eating your food, drinking your water. Before long, purebred Threshling will be mating with 'outsiders' and creating more half-breeds. Heh. And before you say that it will never happen, that's what my mother said when the former King took over. And look where we Saiyans are now." She shrugged lazily. "Just a head's up so you aren't blindsided when there's a half-breed sitting on the throne in the future."

[grampagen]

Return to life loved ones, learn about their foe, and... siring offspring. Quila had to admit that he was not expecting that last one. Then again, it wasn't any of his business what they wished for; he was here simply as reinforcement. Speaking of which, the machine mutant could clearly estimate that, even with their numbers, they were going to be in trouble unless they could up their power levels before Jagam's arrival. Their enemy was at 50,000, his ally unknown, and none of them were anywhere close to being half that strong.



"The enemy of my enemy is my ally; I believe that is one of your planet's idioms, correct?" Quila said, breaking his silence to the assembled, "Her motives can be questioned another time, but as long as the threat of Jagam looms over us it'd be best to focus at the task of hand."

"That remains to be seen," he said, "there are those of us obligated to engage with strife..."

Ochazuke turned back to Nevanlinna.

"...and still those who are content to do nothing but witness the bloodshed."

"I assume one of my kin wants me dead," said Nevanlinna, shrugging. "It should come as one surprise, oh observant one, that power struggles among royalty often involve tying up loose ends. And who better to start with than the runt of the family, isolated as she is on some backwater world? And in the eyes of many, no doubt, tainted by her curiosity of things off-world. Curiosity for its own sake, I mean, rather than merely as a means to enact conquest."

She raised her head a bit, looking down upon the Earthling. "But yes, at best, this planet, its people its history, and every little woven thread that makes up the tapestry that is 'Earth' is nothing but an idle curiosity to me, as well as a means to an end. The same can be said about every other inhabited world, save Reshlan. It is unfortunate, however, that numerous parties seek to do my harm, for I would content to simply be left alone to do what I will. However, if circumstance and the machinations of others force me to take action, then I will destroy those who oppose me so with no mercy, whether they be a stranger or kin I have held dear to me for my entire life."

"What an enlightened paradise Reshlan must be that it must eat its own and make listless victim of its shining figment," he replied. "How far beyond that savage laws of this world, then, that it must enact the degeneration it would so oppose."

His brow furrowed, leaned foward in deathly contemplation as she looked down from the shallow of her nose. Yet the the little one, Quila, spoke true, and for the moment this matter could not be dealt with now, despite his feelings on the matter.

"So it is, then. Our home will be your battlefield soon," he sighed. "Of Jagam, we know, however little. There is the matter of the Priestess that follows behind him. If you would combat this one who you claim to oppose, then trim the fat from your speech as you would from your armour."

"What would the Priestess wield that she would stand against your highness?"

[Miburo]

"Sasheem has changed nothing about his eating habits, prancing pony," the Majin stated as he turned to face the Nevadian. He knew now, of Held's criminal past from P-Sta's memories. He also remembered that the officer had sent in a report about Held to the GP, though he did add an addendum , speaking in support of held for his assitance in the defeat of several threats to the galaxy.

"Huh, you don't say...." Held replied, sighing slightly, a hint of dejection on his face, "Well, I guess this is your version of puber--"

Sasheem found it somewhat funny that he wasn't the only member of the his group being investigated by the GP during his time on Earth. "What has changed, is the method to Sasheem's madness. Turns out that slow and steady wins the race to universal extinction, the Greater Annihilator is a shoe-in to cross the finish line first," the self proclaimed 'Greater Annihilator' proclaimed. "Now...the Malevolent Majin ask you this.... The Galaxy Police. They still after you?"

Held blinked silently as Sasheem asked his question. It was probably the last question he expected today, and from Sasheem of all people. It was hardly common knowledge that the Galaxy Police had an interest in the Nevadian. Hell, he himself had little idea until he finally left earth, only to have his path to Nevada blocked with little fanfare.

"...I...." Held paused for a moment, lost for words. "Huh...I...I didn't expect that."

How in Garthin's name does he know about that? I can't believe the Galaxy Police would go around dropping my name when I'm cooperating with them, would they? Well...I guess 'cooperating' is a strong term, but still.

Was it the result of Held's own gambit? No, it didn't seem likely. The Nevadian had made sure to spread the word that he was running amok amongst the stars once more, but only in very select places. Hives of scum and villainy, halls of jaded mercenaries, smugglers, and anyone who might have had interest in the Nevadian and what he supposedly knew. So far, no one had bit.

And yet, somehow Sasheem seemed to know what he should not.

"...You're...Err...A bit more informed than I would have guess." The Nevadian replied, clearing his mind, as he regained his composure, "....Still, I'd say 'after' is a bit of an overstatement"

He bit his lip, thinking of the correct term.

"It's more like an interest, or a fascination, more than anything else."

For now...The second they find anything that they think could even slightly link me to having something that could do that kind of damage....Hopefully Jinzi can find something on my black box, if he can repair it.

"I don't know if I should be flattered you find me interesting enough to be aware of that" he continued with a laugh to mask his nerves, "or worried that you somehow managed to find out the kinds of thing you shouldn't..."

I guess it's possible he...Has an informant? I mean, the GP hardly make secret of being after him...I'd be hard to avoid them without knowing what they know....But...Sasheem being the type of guy to do that....Has he really changed that much? Or was it all an act earlier? Well, it doesn't really do much for me.

[KingofPie]

"Huh, you don't say...." Held replied, sighing slightly, a hint of dejection on his face, "Well, I guess this is your version of puber--"



Held blinked silently as Sasheem asked his question. It was probably the last question he expected today, and from Sasheem of all people. It was hardly common knowledge that the Galaxy Police had an interest in the Nevadian. Hell, he himself had little idea until he finally left earth, only to have his path to Nevada blocked with little fanfare.

"...I...." Held paused for a moment, lost for words. "Huh...I...I didn't expect that."

How in Garthin's name does he know about that? I can't believe the Galaxy Police would go around dropping my name when I'm cooperating with them, would they? Well...I guess 'cooperating' is a strong term, but still.

Was it the result of Held's own gambit? No, it didn't seem likely. The Nevadian had made sure to spread the word that he was running amok amongst the stars once more, but only in very select places. Hives of scum and villainy, halls of jaded mercenaries, smugglers, and anyone who might have had interest in the Nevadian and what he supposedly knew. So far, no one had bit.

And yet, somehow Sasheem seemed to know what he should not.

"...You're...Err...A bit more informed than I would have guess." The Nevadian replied, clearing his mind, as he regained his composure, "....Still, I'd say 'after' is a bit of an overstatement"

"Sasheem is informed about a lotta things," The Majin began to explain. "HE realized that the destruction of the universe isn't achievable if one remains uninformed."

He bit his lip, thinking of the correct term.

"It's more like an interest, or a fascination, more than anything else."

For now...The second they find anything that they think could even slightly link me to having something that could do that kind of damage....Hopefully Jinzi can find something on my black box, if he can repair it.

"I don't know if I should be flattered you find me interesting enough to be aware of that" he continued with a laugh to mask his nerves, "or worried that you somehow managed to find out the kinds of thing you shouldn't..."

I guess it's possible he...Has an informant? I mean, the GP hardly make secret of being after him...I'd be hard to avoid them without knowing what they know....But...Sasheem being the type of guy to do that....Has he really changed that much? Or was it all an act earlier? Well, it doesn't really do much for me.

"Sasheem does not. However, he also has a problem with the Galaxy Patrol. Three problems, in fact, but that's of no importance to you," he stated looking up in the sky, almost as if he was expecting ships blaring sirens to come in at any minute. He looked back to Held. "But know this Nevadian, if there's any method you're using to avoid the GP, then Sasheem will appreciate it. So much so, in fact that he can transfer monetary compensation for such information. So much so, that when the time comes, Sasheem may spare your planet from destruction. For a while."

Sasheem wasn't particularly worried about too much of the Galactic Police proper. They had some serious firepower among their ranks, but if they called in those three if they combined their powers along with their bond with P-Sta...It could prove some trouble.

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

"So, the observer finally shows her true colors."

Sarada looked at her in a different light at this moment in time. Whereas before she was someone who the Saiyan Queen felt she could glean insight from, if not about Jagam and this so-called Priestess, but about a great many worlds. Nevanlinna was an intergalactic wanderer, after all. There was no telling how many worlds she had seen in her lifetime, how many people she observed, how many cultures she indulged in.

That was before.

Now, she was little more than one of countless who held Saiyans in an unfavorable light. To reveal herself as so unoriginal in her opinion of Sarada's race -- and Sarada in particular, it seemed -- was disappointing. Regardless, it made Sarada's own opinion of the Threshling Princess all the easier to determine.

"I'd thought we could have been friends. Obviously, that hope was fruitless. More realistically, I'd hoped you would be someone I could come to for intel on different worlds. You have been to many different ones, I assume. As if stands, however, you're just another in a very long line of people who don't hold me and mine in a favorable light. I'll adjust my view of you and interaction with you accordingly. Your concern, however, is duly noted."

The very last sentence was spoke with nothing but caustic derision.

Nevanlinna approached Sarada, smiling. When she got close, she looked down at her for a moment, then leaned down. "Don't mistake my feelings towards you and your kind, ape. I do not hate Saiyans in the least. I've no need to feel hatred towards those beneath me; all I feel towards your kind is pity. You live short, brutish, pitiable and pointless lives, slaves to whatever impulses happen to predominate your simian brains at any given moment. But... I am curious, why should the... remaining species of the galaxy give your kind the benefit of the doubt when you have done nothing but trample upon all within reach since Otatop lived, hm? You say you wish to lead the Saiyans to a bright future of coexistence with other species--to continue Mato's reforms--and that is all well and good, I suppose. Much better than your kind simply flinging your refuse everywhere in a futile attempt to prove your relevance, but... we both know it won't last. Sooner or later, another Otatop will worm his or her way into power and undo your grand work. What comes before determines what comes after."

"I wouldn't get too comfortable with the idea that holding mutts at arm's distance is nothing more than a half-measure," Sarada spoke. "Eventually, someone will come in and start changing things in their favor. Before you know it, there will be half-breeds walking around all over Reshlan, breathing your air, eating your food, drinking your water. Before long, purebred Threshling will be mating with 'outsiders' and creating more half-breeds. Heh. And before you say that it will never happen, that's what my mother said when the former King took over. And look where we Saiyans are now." She shrugged lazily. "Just a head's up so you aren't blindsided when there's a half-breed sitting on the throne in the future."

"Unlikely. Our xenophobia is rooted deeply in our biology, and to my knowledge there is but one threshling halfbreed--Jagam--and he was created to serve purely as a weapon. A rather ineffective one, at that," said Neva. "That I would allow halfbreeds and their defective parents to leave unmolested is already far kinder treatment than what most of my kind would inflict. Of course, the idea that any of our kind would fall so low as to lay with pitiable animals like these Earthlings or whathaveyou is laughable in and of itself."

"That remains to be seen," he said, "there are those of us obligated to engage with strife..."

Ochazuke turned back to Nevanlinna.

"...and still those who are content to do nothing but witness the bloodshed."



"What an enlightened paradise Reshlan must be that it must eat its own and make listless victim of its shining figment," he replied. "How far beyond that savage laws of this world, then, that it must enact the degeneration it would so oppose."

His brow furrowed, leaned foward in deathly contemplation as she looked down from the shallow of her nose. Yet the the little one, Quila, spoke true, and for the moment this matter could not be dealt with now, despite his feelings on the matter.

"So it is, then. Our home will be your battlefield soon," he sighed. "Of Jagam, we know, however little. There is the matter of the Priestess that follows behind him. If you would combat this one who you claim to oppose, then trim the fat from your speech as you would from your armour."

"What would the Priestess wield that she would stand against your highness?"

"Oh, make no mistake. My heart weeps tears of blood when I see people suffering and dying. Truly, I love people above all else, even the acquisition of knowledge" said Neva, turning her attention to Ochazuke. "You are not people, just clever, talkative animals."

"But, if it will stop you from yapping, then... the Priestess will more than likely be a noble, which means, at minimum, she will possess approximately as much power as Jagam or myself. She will be adept in various magics and esoteric ki techniques, as well. There is... also a possibility that she will possess powers far in excess of all of us combined. Just be glad they did not send a Knight after me, because even the lowest of the low of the knightly orders possesses power enough to single-handedly annihilate the Saiyan Empire on their own. And my mother... I have never been able to get a true measure of the depths of her power, save that even the greatest and most exalted of the Knightly Orders would not dare stand against her in battle."

[Cthulhu_of_R'lyeh]

He turned from the edge of the Lookout to face Ishtar. When the Dragon Tiamat was summoned, the divine glow fell on his back, lengthening the shadow that fell before him under the darkened sky. Ochazuke's features, shrouded in darkness cast opposite to light, masked on the depth of field he had upon the ageless gold looking back at him to the black fire that tempered it.

Time, it seems, is not immaterial, even for the ageless.

"So you've made your choice."

His hidden countenance fell for a moment on Sarada; more visibly, his frame turned to the wing of the Guardian's palace behind him.

Ochazuke's statement considered and found to be off- if only somewhat- Ishtar simply shook her head slowly once, before offering the truth. "The choice was made for me, long before I was aware of it ... I needed only to find it within myself to accept it, and make it my own."

There came a pause before the Oni shrugged, then.

"With perhaps a few deviations of my own."

"Unlikely. Our xenophobia is rooted deeply in our biology, and to my knowledge there is but one threshling halfbreed--Jagam--and he was created to serve purely as a weapon. A rather ineffective one, at that," said Neva. "That I would allow halfbreeds and their defective parents to leave unmolested is already far kinder treatment than what most of my kind would inflict. Of course, the idea that any of our kind would fall so low as to lay with pitiable animals like these Earthlings or whathaveyou is laughable in and of itself."

At this Ishtar merely sighed. "Platitudes, half-measures, and tired old xenophobia. You mortals are so alike ... it does not matter how many thousands of years separate you."

True to form, history seemed dead set on repetition over reformation, and the Threshling Empire was yet another in a long procession, replacing the Saiyans- save those souls on Callion- the Junjo, and five picking up the mantle of the order the Oni herself had erased from the cosmic tapestry five thousand years prior.

"I will not echo the sentiments of the others who will undoubtedly respond, nor do I otherwise care beyond a simple truth. The time will come when your Empire will be made to answer for its beliefs ... and I will be the judge."

[Yun Lao]

"Oh man... it's only been six months and you all are posturing like a bunch of space peacocks."

With the subtly of a derailed train, Charco entered the debate in his own way. Rising to his feet, he extended a hand to Cyanna to help her up before continuing, "I don't know what happened over the last six months for all of you... hell, I don't even know who some of you are..."

He vaguely remembered Nevanlinna, but all he knew about her was that she was some sort of nameless space elf, "... but you can save all of this holier than thou **** for later. We got Kami and Jack back just in time to kick some dude's face in; this calls for a celebration, not a pissing contest."

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Ever driving to the heart of a matter, Ochazuke's response was no less than Ishtar would have expected. "I realized my previous 'truth' was flawed, and in discovering the way forward despite it; it has made all the difference."



Sarada made her wish then, and alongside the information provided on Jagam there came with it the 'revelation' that Nevanlinna was a Threshling.

A race of xenophobic warriors of a similar bent as the Saiyans, it at least gave context to the brief- if insightful- conversations Ishtar, and the Threshling Princess had engaged in some months previous. In the end however, the golden-eyed Oni didn't much care that this woman was both a familiar of Jagam, and had kept her true nature hidden. The previous point meant little after all, Nevanlinna herself had not actively sought to subvert preparations for the Saiyan Killer; and it was similarly not an issue that the woman had refused to offer up information she was not specifically required to.

After all, Ishtar had kept the truth of her own nature largely hidden. Only Sarada, and Asha'rah knew fully what the Oni truly was ... the others were either wholly unaware, or had only been made privy to specific aspects- like the Hakai energy the golden-eyed Oni herself referred to as the 'Sij'- as the result of accidental exposure.

There was one thing however that settled ill with Ishtar, enough to where she felt the need to add something.



"I had hoped you might be beyond the close-minded idiocy of Parsley and her ilk, her notions on half-breeds and 'Outsiders' so antiquated and erroneous as to be laughable and ... ultimately fatal," the Oni commented.

"That such hope was seemingly flawed is ... disappointing."







When discussions about how the third wish might see itself put to use began however, Ishtar knew well what Sarada's response would be when the idea of simply wishing Jagam dead was floated.

The Oni could feel it after all, the anger, the ... excitement.

Given the option, Sarada wished to humiliate Jagam in much the same was as she had done her sister, Parsley, and in so doing make a statement to the galaxy at large. To say nothing of the Saiyans' desire to fight someone of worth. That Sasheem parroted this ideal was of no surprise either, the Majin's lust for destruction being such that, a battle against an individual with a PL of at least 50,000 might prove to entertain him.



So when it was that the decision was made, and the third wish was left open. Ishtar found herself looked to by Meagan, and then Sarada.

"I ..."

There were several things she could see to wishing for at this point, that much was true. Information on Genesis ... wishing it so that Jagam found himself sapped of strength before their confrontation so that killing him was simply a matter of breaking his neck like a dry twig ... and yet in the end those were not things Ishtar herself wanted, or particularly cared to have in the moment. The one thing she did wish for however, was a thing that would see to annoying- and perhaps enraging- not only Parsley, but Nevanlinna herself.

A thing the golden-eyed Oni certainly considered ...

So finally, after a moment of silence, the Oni simply asked of Tiamat.

"Eternal Dragon, Tiamat ... I wish for the means- be it through magic, or shapeshifting- to sire offspring with my Love, Sarada ... while yet remaining as I am, now, unchanged save for this slight deviation."

“So it is done. An odd request, but one fulfilled. Each of you must eat half of this fruit at the same time when you desire children. The effect and change shall happen then. Farewell, mortals.”

A golden apple appears in Ishtar’s hands as Tiamat disappears, the dragonballs glowing and firing off into the sky in seven different directions.

[grampagen]

"Oh, make no mistake. My heart weeps tears of blood when I see people suffering and dying. Truly, I love people above all else, even the acquisition of knowledge" said Neva, turning her attention to Ochazuke. "You are not people, just clever, talkative animals."

"But, if it will stop you from yapping, then... the Priestess will more than likely be a noble, which means, at minimum, she will possess approximately as much power as Jagam or myself. She will be adept in various magics and esoteric ki techniques, as well. There is... also a possibility that she will possess powers far in excess of all of us combined. Just be glad they did not send a Knight after me, because even the lowest of the low of the knightly orders possesses power enough to single-handedly annihilate the Saiyan Empire on their own. And my mother... I have never been able to get a true measure of the depths of her power, save that even the greatest and most exalted of the Knightly Orders would not dare stand against her in battle."

In spite of the darkening mood coursing through him, for the moment he stood listening quietly to Nevanlinna's flippant words carried upon leavened, righteous airs.

Sparing is the matter, for one who so values knowledge, he thought to himself. Much of it is indeed esoteric, but for the crude matter of strength.

It was the same as it ever was on this sphere and others, those with strength guarded jealously their vantage point upon their pinnacle. After all, what have the mighty to fear? Gazing downward, usurpers held them up, and outwards, unseen threats reached in. These Threshlings it seemed would prefer to, rather than lead the way from their alleged height of strength and being, use these very means to fall their imperial boot upon the neck of the universe, and by so suffocating reserve for themselves their precious breath.

Curiously, Nevanlinna saw fit to make mention of the hidden threat behind the two approaching, the Queen of Reslan. One who would not be here at this time, but by her words the Princess perhaps had made a smallest admission of vulnerability. As she finished speaking to his request, he would not pursue it as such for the moment.

"It must be a relief to you, for preference, to find some solidarity among your lessers," he said. "A proud lineage no doubt, but a title worth less than the plumage of a bird, spread wide in a fearsome, empty display. Even in full knowledge of the enmity of your grace, your kin seem to consider you no less than the cleverest of animals in exile."

He turned from Nevanlinna and began to walk to the edge of the Lookout. "Perhaps I should be thankful you choose to continue to pick through the muck among the rest of us."

Ochazuke's statement considered and found to be off- if only somewhat- Ishtar simply shook her head slowly once, before offering the truth. "The choice was made for me, long before I was aware of it ... I needed only to find it within myself to accept it, and make it my own."

There came a pause before the Oni shrugged, then.

"With perhaps a few deviations of my own."

"Deviation," the coarse half-chuckle left him with a partial smile. "Is that what you call it?"

The Dragon's business concluded, Ochazuke's countenance stepped from the film of shadow. A cursory glance at Ishtar within, he became aware of the subliminal change in person and aura where hidden things leaned into his sense-awareness.

"It's not in your nature to submit."

[Sub-Zero MKA]

Nevanlinna approached Sarada, smiling. When she got close, she looked down at her for a moment, then leaned down. "Don't mistake my feelings towards you and your kind, ape. I do not hate Saiyans in the least. I've no need to feel hatred towards those beneath me; all I feel towards your kind is pity. You live short, brutish, pitiable and pointless lives, slaves to whatever impulses happen to predominate your simian brains at any given moment. But... I am curious, why should the... remaining species of the galaxy give your kind the benefit of the doubt when you have done nothing but trample upon all within reach since Otatop lived, hm? You say you wish to lead the Saiyans to a bright future of coexistence with other species--to continue Mato's reforms--and that is all well and good, I suppose. Much better than your kind simply flinging your refuse everywhere in a futile attempt to prove your relevance, but... we both know it won't last. Sooner or later, another Otatop will worm his or her way into power and undo your grand work. What comes before determines what comes after."

"Mm," Sarada hummed after Nevanlinna spilled her poisonous piece. If she was offended, or even somewhat annoyed by the spiel, her smile certainly didn't betray it. "Pity, hm? I've always wondered if that was better or worse than hatred. At least with hatred, there's no ambiguity about whether or not one cares about my wellbeing. Pity, there always that question about whether or not the one bestowing that useless emotion actually wants to see my and my kind rise from the filth we've been rolling in since Otatop. Regardless, you're pity is duly noted, Princess."

She wondered what changed in the Threshling royal to bring out this completely unmeasured, vile, hateful side of her. To her knowledge, Sarada had said or done nothing to bring it out, nor had anyone else. It just... happened, out of the blue. Perhaps she finally grew tired of pretending and sought to simply let her true self hang out. Or, maybe, this was a slip up, brought about by the fact that her 'trash' brother was on his way to, with hope, die by a primitive ape's hand. Such would surely bring reproach upon the royal family's name and legacy.

Or, perhaps she was simply a bitch and could no longer hide it through cool, neutral faces and smoother words.

Either way, Sarada deemed it appropriate to place every word of what she said through a filter, to avoid letting her get a rise out of her. It would be a shame to allow such hateful filth to enrage the new Saiyan Queen to the point that she said or did something in kind.

"Unlikely. Our xenophobia is rooted deeply in our biology, and to my knowledge there is but one threshling halfbreed--Jagam--and he was created to serve purely as a weapon. A rather ineffective one, at that," said Neva. "That I would allow halfbreeds and their defective parents to leave unmolested is already far kinder treatment than what most of my kind would inflict. Of course, the idea that any of our kind would fall so low as to lay with pitiable animals like these Earthlings or whathaveyou is laughable in and of itself."

With this response, her smile only widened. "Good, hold on to that belief that biology can override one's sense of right. We once thought that conquest and domination were once in our very DNA. And yet, here we are today, with war and slavery behind us and a bright future ahead of us. It is sad, though, that your people think yourselves above so many others, yet willingly shackle yourselves to the trammels of ignorance and bigotry. Take if from someone who knows, realizing that other races have more to offer than subjects of mockery and derision will make your lives so much better."

She was certainly happier. If she was still the same as she was just a few short years ago, she wouldn't have even dreamed of being with Ishtar, much less willing to bear her child. As such, both those occurrences had and would come to pass simply because she saw beyond the racial barriers and looked deeper therein. If the Threshling did the same, regardless of how long it took, they'd be better off because of it.

"As it stands, you're only limiting your growth as a species, and you will have to answer for it eventually. Will you stand up to that test, I wonder?"

"Oh man... it's only been six months and you all are posturing like a bunch of space peacocks."

With the subtly of a derailed train, Charco entered the debate in his own way. Rising to his feet, he extended a hand to Cyanna to help her up before continuing, "I don't know what happened over the last six months for all of you... hell, I don't even know who some of you are..."

He vaguely remembered Nevanlinna, but all he knew about her was that she was some sort of nameless space elf, "... but you can save all of this holier than thou **** for later. We got Kami and Jack back just in time to kick some dude's face in; this calls for a celebration, not a pissing contest."

Oh, a man of such simple common sense, Charco was. Jack and Eva were back with the living -- technically, but were not yet back with them in the physical sense -- so that was a call for celebration. With the looming threat of Jagam's impending approach, there was precious little time to enjoy each other's company before the battlefield was to be set for their confrontation. As such, today was the day for them eat, drink, and catch up before engaging in the training that would either save their lives or prolong their deaths for a few seconds longer.

Either way, Sarada planned on enjoying herself with her love, regardless of what her spiteful sister or her Threshling counterpart had to say.

"You're right, Charco! I saw someone make a pitcher of kava water and let's get wasted!"

[Sub-Zero MKA]

So when it was that the decision was made, and the third wish was left open. Ishtar found herself looked to by Meagan, and then Sarada.

"I ..."

There were several things she could see to wishing for at this point, that much was true. Information on Genesis ... wishing it so that Jagam found himself sapped of strength before their confrontation so that killing him was simply a matter of breaking his neck like a dry twig ... and yet in the end those were not things Ishtar herself wanted, or particularly cared to have in the moment. The one thing she did wish for however, was a thing that would see to annoying- and perhaps enraging- not only Parsley, but Nevanlinna herself.

A thing the golden-eyed Oni certainly considered ...

So finally, after a moment of silence, the Oni simply asked of Tiamat.

"Eternal Dragon, Tiamat ... I wish for the means- be it through magic, or shapeshifting- to sire offspring with my Love, Sarada ... while yet remaining as I am, now, unchanged save for this slight deviation."

“So it is done. An odd request, but one fulfilled. Each of you must eat half of this fruit at the same time when you desire children. The effect and change shall happen then. Farewell, mortals.”

A golden apple appears in Ishtar’s hands as Tiamat disappears, the dragonballs glowing and firing off into the sky in seven different directions.

The third wish was made, just as Ishtar said she would days ago on their way to Earth. She wanted the means to sire children with Sarada, and the Dragon Tiamat obliged. A single golden apple was the key to their otherwise impossible lineage. Half of the fruit for each of them would unlock the door through which their children and future half-breed heirs to the Saiyan throne would come.

Sarada felt nothing but anxious excitement. While she meant what she said, that she would love nothing more than to carry her love's children, motherhood was not something she was prepared for in the slightest. Even if the palace's resident care-nurse would tend to her children's every need and desire, she was still going to be in their lives. There would be no ambiguity as to who their mother was, unlike her with her own mother and Maiz. The responsibilities that laid within such a relationship terrified her, and Ishtar would feel that permeating terror through the bond that linked them at a spiritual level.

Still, despite that anxiety, she was excited, and would meet that day when they decided the time was right head on.

She stepped over and picked up the apple. "Our future is in the palm of my hand, my love," she said to Ishtar with a fond, loving smile. "I can't wait to embark on it with you." She kissed her on the side of the mouth, not caring that others were there to witness the display of affection, and then placed the apple in a capsule for safe keeping.

"That you would waste a wish on such a juvenile, childish," Parsley spat before catching herself. Her words were sharper than any blade, denoting the sheer, unadulterated disgust she felt at the very idea of her sister spawning a half-breed child. That this child would be heir to the throne only made her even more ill. "Fine. Have your children with your pet, sister. Don't expect me to treat that... thing with any less disdain than I would that foolish buffoon our brother worships."

"Hmph. I'd expect nothing less from an ignorant fool like yourself, sister."

"Ignorant?"

"Yes. You and the Threshling Princess are cut from the same cloth. That you both seem incapable of realizing that there is more to other races than how they compare to your own only shows you both have chained yourselves to your own limitations. You both won't grow until you take the blinders off and see the universe for what it is, full of races and beings that have so much to offer. Until such a day comes, I have nothing to worry about, since you won't be stepping foot on Vocado until then."

"Heh. You've exiled me?"

"No, of course not. You exiled yourself the moment you spat your hateful rhetoric for the entire empire to see. They won't let you rest until your either dead or repentant, Parsley. I would say you can shack up with Nevanlinna until then, but I think she'll be too busy dodging assassination attempts from her own siblings. Hehe. Maybe you two can convene in the cover of darkness on that little outpost she plans on building for outsiders like you when she takes the throne. If she's even alive by that point."

Parsley fell silent, cutting a sharp glance at the Threshling that Sarada claimed she was one in the same with. Her eyes narrowed, but other than that, she said nothing.